Sword and Ice
by 1376
Summary: Book two after Sword and Fire. All rights to Mercedes Lackey of course.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter one**

Taia sighed and stretched her tired muscles. She was knee deep in mud, teaching the Heirs to fight in unfavorable weather conditions – and she was getting too old for this. A decade had passed since that war against the mage attempting a takeover of Ma'ar's dream of world domination and her muscles knew it, even if her mind didn't. These twins certainly knew how to show her, however, exactly how much she had aged in the last few years.

"Circle around, Lyra!" yelled Kris. "If we time this perfectly, we might just succeed!"

Over her dead body. Of course, that may very well be what happened, but she was not about to let a couple of teenagers best her. She was Taia, legendary warrior – oh, hellfires, they had her surrounded.

"Come on, Kris, we have her!" yelled Lyra. And to all appearances, they did. Lyra came up from the left side, where Taia had only a knife and Kris came from the right. Had it been a real battle, Taia would have had full swords in each hand; but very few fought in that style, so she was teaching them to fight mostly against what they would more likely encounter.

The twins were excellent students; mischievous, to be sure, but they took their studies seriously and put all their focus into learning whatever their teachers had to teach them. They would make excellent co-rulers one day, following in their mother Selenay's footsteps. Kris had been Chosen, and therefore was the primary heir as Valdemar law required the monarch also be a Herald. The Companions implied to the Heraldic Circle that Lyra's time would come, but the girl was understandably impatient. It was widely believed that Lyra would become the King's Own to her brother, but that required that she be Chosen by Rolan, who was currently the Companion to Talia, Queen's Own to their mother. And so Lyra would have to wait.

Taia defended herself adequately against Kris' attack, but only just managed to escape Lyra's; the two worked well together, using their Mindspeech to coordinate attacks. Had it been anyone but Taia, or maybe Kerowyn, it would have been an easy victory; it was Taia's goal to train them to be able to defeat even herself.

They were nearly there.

"Good job," she told them. "Excellent, in fact. Next time, I think you will succeed. Lyra, your attack was nearly perfect, but you need to guard your left side better. Kris, don't be so impatient; hold back a little bit and you won't give me so many opportunities to fight you off. Ok, everyone back to the salle; time to clean up and get some breakfast."

They did as Taia suggested. After cleaning up, the twins headed off to the Collegium kitchens and Taia sat down on a bench. She sighed. She brushed out her greying hair and rebraided it; she had a meeting to get ready for. That was her life – meetings, weapons' training, mage lessons. She sometimes found it hard to believe that she used to traipse about the countryside with an army, fighting the enemy and sleeping in tents; her Shin'a'in childhood or her time in k'Treva Vale seemed even less likely to have occurred to the person she was now. Instead of a sleeping roll on the floor of a tent she slept on a feather mattress inside the Palace Complex; instead of furs for blankets she had down-stuffed blankets and pillows. The only thing that reminded her that she was still the Shin'a'in nomad she was born to be was the herd of horses she didn't have time to train.

She sighed again and headed off to the kitchens herself; meeting or not, she needed something to eat or her grumbling stomach would be answering any questions the Council had for her instead of her voice. She grabbed a meat pocket pie and a mug of kava, eating as she walked. She gulped the kava down just outside the Council room door and handed the empty mug to a page and walked in. On the agenda for the day was continued discussion of the Eastern Empire; they had been knocking on the door threatening to attack for some time now. In between Valdemar and the Empire was their ally of Hardorn, but the effect was the same. If Hardorn was attacked, Valdemar was honor-bound to assist in their defense. Neither Valdemar or Hardorn were fully recovered from the previous war, having lost two-thirds of their armies to the mage; which was likely why the Empire was threatening attack in the first place.

"We need to let Hardorn stand or fall on its own," said the Councilmember from the south. "We don't have the army to defeat the Empire."

"That may be true," said the Councilmember from the east, "but neither does Hardorn. If we leave them to fight on their own, they'll be quickly overrun and then the Empire will come for us anyway. We have more of a chance if we fight together."

"We have no chance either way," said the Councilmember from the north. "We are defeated now with Hardorn, or later without – it's only a matter of time before we are all citizens of the Empire."

"Would that be such a bad thing?" said the Councilmember from the west. "We have seen how Tremane runs Hardorn, and he is from the Empire. It seems to run smoothly enough."

"But we would not be free," said Selenay. "And would we be allowed to maintain our traditions? Would we have one religion imposed on us? What would happen to the Heralds?"

"The fact is," said Taia, "We do not have the strength to resist the Empire. We simply do not. We cannot fight an all-out war with them and hope to survive, not with our collective armies at half-strength. We need another option."

"Says the mercenary captain who was so determined to defeat the mage army that was twice the size of the Empire, and did, in fact, defeat them," said Daren. "Are you so convinced we can't do the same here?"

"We had a full army against that mage," said Taia. "Plus we had the help of Rethwellan, Karse, Jkatha and even Iftel, not to mention the Clans and Vales and mercenaries. We have none of that, now. We also had no other option – that army was actively marching on us. The Empire is just skirmishing, testing the borders. We need to discuss other options."

"Such as?" pushed Daren.

 _:Assassination, for one:_ she Mindspoke. This was not the kind of thing you said out loud in a council meeting. _:We might be able to at least stall them by assassinating their leader. But it would be difficult and dangerous to do so:_

 _:Clearly:_ replied Daren. _:But is it something we are even able to contemplate? We have difficulty maintaining an agent in their Court, how are we going to insert an assassin?:_

 _:That is the part I need to work on:_ replied Taia.

"We should augment the border guards in Hardorn to help keep the skirmishes from becoming more than that," said Taia. "Bide our time, build the army as quickly as we can and hope it is enough."

 _:And find a way to get an assassin into their Court:_

 _:Quickly.:_

The meeting concluded. They all went about their daily business – the Councilmembers to whatever business deals they had to accomplish for the day, and Taia to her next class. Mage class, this time; beginners. She was teaching a batch of brand new mages how to shield. They were young, astonishingly young; or maybe it was just that she was getting old. She thought of her greying hair, which was really just an illusion itself; her hair in reality was pure white from decades of Adept-level magic. She kept up the illusion not out of vanity so much as she wanted to continue to appear Shin'a'in; her appearance was often the only thing she had left of her heritage, and even that wasn't real. It was also to cover the multitude of scars she had not just on her face, but over her entire body. She kept her hair greying because she _wasn't_ vain, and she knew she was aging; greying hair was appropriate.

The shielding class was uneventful; the children – if she was honest with herself, they weren't children, they were young teenagers, but they made her feel old enough – were learning quickly. All except one boy, Juren, with a frighteningly powerful Thoughtsensing Gift; he was finding it very difficult to shield himself. He was growing more and more distressed by his inability to keep himself from 'hearing' the thoughts of others without the assistance of his Companion keeping him shielded, but Taia was certain that he would be able to learn. She thought she might need her lifebonded partner Whitestar to help, however; the boy did not seem to be responding to her efforts to teach him. He reminded her of her own childhood, before she learned to shield, having the feelings of her entire Clan in her head all the time; she knew exactly how this poor boy felt and wanted to get him taught as quickly as possible.

She met Whitestar for lunch in the cafeteria; she had learned early on that if she did not make it a point to take time for meals, she wouldn't get one. So she made sure that she never had any meetings or classes scheduled for lunchtime, and so did Whitestar; often, it was the only time they saw each other until they both returned to their room to sleep.

"I can certainly try to help teach young Juren," Whitestar said when Taia posed the question. "I'm sure he can learn, it's just going to take a lot of time."

"Good," said Taia. "I'll send him over to join your class tomorrow in place of mine; maybe he'll only need a few lessons."

"Let's hope," agreed Whitestar. "What was the decision in the Council?"

"Bide our time," said Taia. "Bolster the skirmishers on the border and try to keep them at just that while we work on a plan to get an assassin into their court."

"An assassin?" asked Whitestar. "Do we even _have_ assassins?"

Taia gave Whitestar a wry look.

"Only a couple," she said. "Myself and Kerowyn. And I have a feeling I know which of us is easier to sneak across two borders – and it isn't the one with the white horse."

Whitestar groaned.

"We can't go traipsing across two borders ourselves," she said. "I mean, we're fairly recognizable as well – a Taleydras Healing Adept in a she'chorne pairing with a Shin'a'in warrior mage? How is that expected to work?"

"It's not like I've volunteered," said Taia. "They could yet decide to send someone else, maybe Skif even, but same problem with the distinctive white horse. We could even decide to train someone specifically for the purpose. But assassination – while not an ideal solution, it doesn't eliminate the Empire threat, it only postpones it – is our best bet at the moment."

"We sure don't have the army to defeat them," agreed Whitestar. "And we're unlikely to get the assistance of our allies, either. The last time, it was a threat to all of us, but the Empire shows no interest in Karse or Rethwellan. I'm afraid you're right."

"It's been awhile since we went traipsing around the world," said Taia. "Are we even sure we remember how?"

"I know I'm not going to enjoy leaving the comforts of Haven, that's for sure!" said Whitestar. "But I suppose if it needs to be done, it needs to be done. And better to have it done by mages, since the Empire uses so much magic. Alright, fine. When is this happening?"

"Slow down," said Taia. "It hasn't even been officially decided yet, I only just mentioned it to Daren – the council still thinks we're just going to continue the skirmishes. We may yet get out of it!"

They both laughed, but knew the likelihood of their escaping this responsibility were slim. Sometimes they wished they were not quite so talented. But the official decision was some time off yet, so they went about their days as ordinarily as possible. Weapons classes, mage classes, meetings, always more meetings, training the horses when there was even a spare candlemark to do so…..most of the time they were tended to by Jacqui, Taia's sister-in-law. Jacqui had been parther to Brandi, Taia's beloved older sister; but Brandi had been killed in the war. Jacqui had taken Taia up on her offer to come to Valdemar and not be surrounded by reminders of Brandi for awhile and had never left. Taia was grateful to have her there; it was nice to have a member of her family other than Whitestar nearby, and selfishly she was glad to have someone help with the horses. But sometimes she felt guilty that Jacqui was so often herself alone, and she wanted her to find someone again.

A moon passed. It was nearly winter; Taia did not do well in winter. A career full of joint injuries in battle, not to mention having had all her bones crushed by Mornelithe Falconsbane when she was held as his prisoner, had left her with severe arthritis. This year was no different, although she had worked out a plan with Jeri so that she would not have to teach classes in the snow. It was important for the students to learn to fight in the snow, but Taia herself just couldn't do it anymore; Jeri had taken over for Alberich shortly after the war and was perfectly capable of taking those classes while Taia stayed inside the heated salle.

She was certainly spoiled in this life. Far removed from the mercenary captain traipsing through all kinds of weather to fight the enemy, she spent her days in comfort. And now the Eastern Empire was likely going to make her leave the lap of luxury and go traipsing around again. She remembered feeling far-removed from her previous self and remembered the old Shin'a'in curse – may you live in interesting times.

Interesting times indeed.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter two**

"Juren, you are doing well, but your shielding is still not strong enough," said Taia. Juren had attended several classes with Whitestar to improve his shielding and while progress was made, the child still had enormous difficulty. "Let's try working on your ground and center. Maybe if we improve the strength of that, the shields will come more easily."

"How am I ever going to get it?" asked Juren, clearly on the verge of tears. "I have been working and working, and all my agemates have learned it. Why can't I? Lyesa can't keep me shielded forever."

"And why not?" asked Taia.

"Because it's not fair to her!" cried Juren. "I am a total failure, she's probably going to repudiate me just for being so stupid that I can't even shield properly!"

And now the tears came in earnest. Taia understood; it had been very difficult for her to depend on the Vale to shield her Gifts, back when she was incapable of doing it for herself. It was the reason she spent so much time learning to build the strongest shields she possibly could. She couldn't quite figure out why Juren was having such a difficult time, but she intended to find out.

"Lyesa is not going to repudiate you," said Taia. "You are exactly the kind of person who should be a Herald – you are kind, you are just, you think before you act and you consider the needs of the people around you before you think of yourself. I should think that the energy Lyesa spends helping you shield is well worth the benefits of having you as a Herald, and as her Chosen. Ask her. Go on."

Juren stopped crying for a moment and was distant for a moment, indicating that he was doing just that. And then he smiled, and laughed –

"You're right," he said. "Lyesa says that I'm being ridiculous. She hardly notices the energy she spends shielding me; repudiating me would be a mistake, and Companions don't make them."

"Quite right," said Taia. "But wait – you can Mindspeak your Companion? But not people?"

"Yes," said Juren. "I don't know why, if it's just the Companion bond, but I can Mindspeak her. I've never heard anyone else, though."

"Hmm," said Taia. "Let me know when you hear me."

Mindspeech was Taia's strongest Gift, aside from the Mage Gift. She could Mindspeak anyone she chose, whether or not they shared that Gift, and at considerable distance as well. So she Mindspoke Juren at increasing 'volumes' until he 'heard' her – and discovered it was well below the threshold of where an unGifted person would 'hear'.

"Interesting," she said, when Juren indicated that he had 'heard'. "You _are_ shielded – just not with your Thoughtsensing ability, and shielded quite strongly. You have the Gift of Mindspeech, my young friend; you've just managed to keep it shielded so tightly that you haven't been able to use it except with your Companion. You're not shielded from her, so you 'hear' her just fine."

Juren was dumbfounded. "I'm shielded? I have Mindspeech?" he stuttered. "But how can that be possible? I can't shield the Thoughtsensing, how am I shielding the Mindspeech?"

"I'm going to find out," said Taia. "And then I'm going to show you."

She used her Magesight to examine Juren. She wondered why she hadn't thought of this sooner, actually; but never mind that, she thought she could solve this problem after all. She 'looked' at his Gifts through her own, and saw that the shielding he was using on his Mindspeech Gift was instinctual; the shields he was trying to build around the Thoughtsensing Gift were entirely different, and not grounded in the same manner. She used her own Mindspeech to 'show' him the difference, and felt for herself the relief when he finally realized what he was missing. She watched while he carefully undid his ineffective Thoughtsensing shields and examined the Mindspeech shields. After a few missteps, he finally saw how to use the same shields around both Gifts, as well as how to lower and put up the shield so that he could actually use both Gifts consciously.

"Excellent work!" said Taia. "I didn't even have to show you how to change your shielding – once you saw the ones you had built instinctively, you did it all by yourself. THAT is the mark of a Herald – taking initiative to fix a problem. I can't tell you how proud I am of you, Juren; you have worked so hard, and you have finally found success. You are going to do Lyesa, and indeed all of Valdemar, right proud!"

Juren grinned and threw his arms around his teacher.

"Thank you!" he cried. "Thank you for teaching me, thank you for not giving up on me, thank you for believing in me! I will do my best to never let you down!"

Taia was surprised, but returned the boy's embrace. "You could never let me down, Juren. I will always be proud of you. Now go, it's time for lunch!"

Juren grinned again and ran off with the exuberance of youth. Taia smiled, sighed and got to her feet. It was time for her lunch, too; and time to meet with Dirk, the Herald who generally identified what Gifts a newly Chosen might have. She needed to discuss with him why this boy's Mindspeech Gift went undiscovered.

She met Whitestar for lunch today out in the field with the horses; their bondbirds had been restless and needed a good hunt. There was a forest on the edge of the field, so Taia and Whitestar brought bread, butter and kava from the kitchens to have a picnic. Ryki, the hawk-eagle, was the first to find success and brought them a rabbit, which Whitestar quickly skinned and spitted over an open flame; Tyke the forestgyre was next with another. Sera, the owl-eagle brought down a wild pig, and no one was surprised when Syen the eagle came in with a doe. Ryki quickly got himself another rabbit while Whitestar skinned and spitted the one Tyke brought in. She then field-dressed the pig and the doe, giving the birds whichever pieces they wanted for themselves. Taia Fetched the rest of the meat back to the Collegium kitchens and the hides to one of the stalls in their personal stables; Jacqui would finish cleaning and tanning them. She would then use them to make whatever she needed and sell the rest.

 _:Good meal:_ said Ryki. _:Like old times. Like hunt with family.:_

 _:Me too:_ said Taia. _:Well done. Thank you.:_

 _:Welcome:_

The rabbits finished cooking and Whitestar added the spices and herbs she had brought along. Both women dug in, enjoying their picnic.

"Mmmmm," said Whitestar. "I'd forgotten how much I enjoyed fire-roasted rabbit. We should do this more often."

 _:Yes.:_ said Syen. _:Should leave city. Hunt more. More free.:_

Whitestar smiled and reported what Syen had said.

"Some days, I agree," said Taia. "I'd like to get away from the city for a while, no responsibilities other than feeding ourselves. But I'm not sure I remember how to do that!"

They both laughed. "Unfortunately, you're probably right," agreed Whitestar. "We're not exactly nomads anymore!"

The women finished their meat and buttered their bread, which they had toasted over the fire. They sipped at their kava and discussed Taia's progress in teaching Juren.

"Why didn't I think of that?" said Whitestar. "Still, that begs the question even more, why was his Mindspeech Gift undiscovered?"

"I don't know," said Taia. "But I am meeting Dirk in half a candlemark to find out."

"Good idea," said Whitestar. "Who knows, it's possible we're missing a whole lot of Gifts in people and we don't even know it!"

In the end, it turned out that they were not, in fact, missing a lot of Gifts. Dirk was chagrined at having missed this one, but it had been an honest mistake. The Mindspeech was so well shielded that it was undetectable to anything but MageSight, and Dirk was not a mage. Why Lyesa had felt the need to not disclose the Gift, however, was another question altogether; and Dirk said that his own Companion Ahrodie was not able to get the answer from her, either. So Taia walked over to Companion's field to meet Lyesa herself.

She did not normally bespeak Companions; it was widely known that they did not, as a rule, speak with anyone other than their own Chosen. However, it wasn't that Taia _couldn't_ bespeak them. She had, on two occasions, done just that, and today was going to be the third.

 _:Excuse me:_ she began. _:Which of you is Lyesa?:_

The herd was visibly displeased by the fact that she had disturbed them, but she wasn't about to let that stop her. This was important.

 _:You can ignore me if you wish, but I will stay right here disturbing your peace until Lyesa comes to speak with me. So it's your choice; speak with me now, or speak with me later, after hearing every random thought that comes into my head between now and then:_

And with that, she proceeded to bombard them all with her thoughts about pocket pies, hunting, picnics, birds, flowers – whatever happened to pass through her head. It wasn't long before a relatively small Companion came up to the fence with obvious reluctance.

 _:Good.:_ said Taia. _:You must be Lyesa. I want to know why you let your Chosen suffer through not knowing how to shield himself when all it would have taken was to let us know of his Mindspeech Gift. For that matter, I want to know why you didn't let anyone know he had Mindspeech. Doesn't seem the most helpful thing for a Companion to do for her Chosen, now does it?:_

Lyesa flattened her ears and tried to shy away.

 _:Oh, no you don't.:_ said Taia. _:I know you think that the relationship between you and your Chosen is none of my business, but the training of your Chosen in his Gifts is very much my business. Why you would purposefully keep information secret that hindered that training is something I'd like to understand. For you to watch him feel like a failure all these months, well, that's between you and him – but it's something you should think about.:_

Lyesa flattened her ears again, but lowered her head.

 _:I….am very young. I did not realize you didn't know about the Mindspeech already.:_ she said.

 _:Well I don't see how that's possible, but ok. Next time, please share information which may help in the training of your Chosen with the Circle, ok? Ok. Tell Rolan, I suppose. If there is something that we should know, Rolan will pass it along.:_

 _:Ok.:_ said Lyesa. She sounded a little annoyed to take orders from someone who wasn't even a Herald, much less her Chosen – but there wasn't much she could argue with.

 _:Thank you.:_ said Taia. They both turned around and went their separate ways. Companions are tricky; they like to pretend they're infallible, but they weren't. They were probably not terribly happy with Taia pointing that out to them, so she didn't want to wait and wear out her welcome.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter three**

It was Midsummer. Classes were canceled for the celebration, and everyone was enjoying themselves at the fair. There were booths for people to buy things at, things from all over Velgarth, and there were more booths of performers of every skill from fencing to juggling to actors and plays. Taia and Whitestar were using the opportunity both to enjoy their day off and to study the vendors from the Eastern Empire. They needed to get an idea of how the average citizen from the Empire conducted themselves. It had not yet been decided that the plan to insinuate an assassin into the Empire would be implemented; neither had it been decided that Taia and Whitestar would be the agents to do it. However, Midsummer Faire only happened once a year, and the next opportunity wouldn't be until Midwinter Festival; so even if the information they gathered was not needed, it was worth the effort.

They had decided to gather their information under false identities so that just in case they did go, and these vendors saw them, they would not be recognized. The chances were slim, but considering how difficult it had been to even insert a spy into the Empire, the effort was minimal and the rewards may be life-preserving. So they walked around the fair appearing to everyone as two young Blues – male, teenagers, and unlikely to be seen as a threat or even remembered at all.

"I wonder if we're walking properly," said Taia.

"What do you mean?" asked Whitestar.

"Well, teenage boys have a particular swagger, don't they?" Taia answered. "Men in general, I think. Are we swaggering?"

"I don't know," said Whitestar. "I suppose we should have thought about that before we decided on these particular illusions. Hopefully no one notices!"

They went about their day. They made a point to observe any play or performance at a booth from the Eastern Empire and they purchased whatever was being sold at an Eastern Empire stand. They made sure to pay particular attention to stands selling clothing, and each purchased several outfits; however, in order to not appear suspicious, they did not purchase them all at the same time, nor did they actually purchase all of them themselves. They were probably being overly cautious, but better to be overly cautious than reckless. They had arranged ahead of time for the items they identified to be purchased by multiple individuals, so that it would appear that they were random purchases rather than any concentrated attempt by one person to buy Eastern Empire apparel. Heralds with Mindspeech were given instruction on which item to purchase, including a mental picture of exactly which item they were to target.

 _:Elspeth, please purchase the blue trousers at the stand by the meat pies to fit Whitestar. I purchased the brown ones already, do not spend more than 7 crowns!:_ Taia sent.

Elspeth indicated her assent and Taia and Whitestar proceeded to the same meat pie stand Taia had indicated for directions. It was time for lunch. They each purchased a meat pie, then proceeded to the kava booth and the fruit pastries for dessert. They carried their purchases to a copse of trees somewhat separate from the market and sat down to eat. They abandoned their illusions for the time being, as they were out of the visual range of anyone still shopping and began to eat.

"They are a very outwardly proper people," said Whitestar.

"I noticed that as well," said Taia. "That may be the biggest challenge we could face in infiltrating them; imagine a couple of old mercenaries trying to be 'proper'!"

They both laughed. Mercenaries had a rather torrid sense of humor, and not much in the way of proper behavior; life was too easily cut short to waste time on being anything other than exactly what they were. Taia and Whitestar had begun their lives as Shin'a'in and Tale'edras, respectively; people somewhat more proper than mercenaries, but very different cultures from the Eastern Empire. Even Valdemar was wildly different from the individuals Taia and Whitestar had interacted with from the Empire; the Empire citizens were loathe to joke, very serious and straightforward in their interactions, but rigid. They had heard from Selenay that Tremane, the man who had begun his career as a military commander assigned to takeover Hardorn at the beginning of the mage storms who became trapped by those storms and was now the Hardornen king, that the court of the Empire was rife with scandals, politicking, and one slip of the tongue could end in execution. It would be wise for anyone sent on this mission to spend time at Tremane's court in Hardorn to learn exactly how to avoid such a slip.

Taia strongly suspected that if they did in fact implement this plan, whoever was selected to go would be sent at the end of the summer to spend the winter in Tremane's court. While it was not certain that she and Whitestar would be chosen for the mission it was highly probable. They simply did not have a surplus of people sufficiently trained to serve as assassin who were not also Heralds; assassination was by itself not something Heralds were often prepared to do, and even the few that were, well, they were burdened with those distinctive white horses called Companions. Their coat could not be dyed, and it took a very powerful illusion to make them appear anything other than bright white. That illusion would be easily detected in a land where magic use was the norm and not the exception; that use had changed following the mage storms, but it was still present. It was not impossible, and had its benefits; in case of discovery, there was no faster way out of anywhere than a Companion, who would fight like twenty men and not have to be called or saddled by his or her rider, but it wasn't ideal. Also, the discovery of a Herald in the Empire's court would bring about war on Valdemar; someone who couldn't be definitively identified as Valdemaran, it would be difficult for the Empire to prove enough to declare war.

They finished their meal and shared their observations of the Empire citizens before they reestablished their illusions and went back to the fair. They made some more purchases, watched some more performances, made more observations; mostly, though, they enjoyed their day of no real responsibilities. No classes to teach, no meetings to attend….their days were ordinarily filled from the moment they swallowed their last bite of breakfast to the moment they laid down to sleep with responsibility, and it was a welcome respite. Midsummer fair lasted for a whole sennight; they would not be able to enjoy the entirety of it without meetings, of course, but their schedule would be significantly lighter.

When the last performance had finished and the last vendor had closed their stand, Taia and Whitestar headed off to the stables. They had decided to go for an evening ride outside the walls of Haven. They selected their mounts; Taia chose Kisten, a solid black stallion descended from Irix, the mount she rode in the last war, and out of Diyeh, a mare who was Kyesh's get. Whitestar chose Maleh, a chestnut mare out of Ixien and fathered by Tyre, a colt of Syrx' parentage. Taia spent her rare idle moments maintaining a genealogy of all her horses so that she could breed them appropriately; she wanted to have mounts with the best qualities of all of her battle horses, but avoid inbreeding. Since the herd had been founded with mostly the contributions of only two stallions – Myk and Ishim – this was complicated. So she had to keep careful track of each generation. There had been the occasional infusion of blood from Brandi and Jacqui's stallions back when she was a mercenary, but those were rare these days since she almost never went back to the Plains and certainly not with any significant number of mares.

They rode out some distance from the city; they had decided to camp for the night, since they had no reason to be back at any particular hour the next day. They headed to a nearby forest. The birds went hunting for their dinner and the women set up their tent and started the cookfire. They were just sitting down preparing to cook the meat they anticipated from the birds when they heard a terrific scream – and it was coming from Whitestar.

"Tyke!" she cried. "Tyke, they've killed Tyke!"

They both took off running in the direction that Whitestar felt her beloved bird had been. Tyke was on the ground, torn to pieces by a mountain cat nearby; the other three birds had made short work of the cat, but it was too late for poor Tyke. Syen was screeching her distress, her wings outstretched; Syen and Tyke had shared the bond with Whitestar, so Tyke had been a partner to her as well. Sera and Ryki were upset at the loss of their friend, but not showing quite the level of distress that Syen was in, so with Whitestar incoherent Taia asked them what had happened.

 _:Tyke hunting rabbit:_ said Ryki.

 _:Cat also hunting rabbit:_ said Sera.

 _:Tyke caught rabbit, cat caught Tyke:_ said Ryki.

 _:Syen caught cat._ : said Sera, with obvious satisfaction that the cat that had killed their friend was dead.

 _:Tell Syen thank you for that:_ said Taia. _:What do you think we should do with the cat?:_

 _:Let it rot:_ said Sera. Ryki agreed. Taia collected Whitestar, who was sitting with Syen, mourning their loss. The family returned to their tent. Taia cooked the meat from the animals Ryki and Sera had caught before Tyke's death; neither were hungry anymore, but they still needed to eat something and the meat shouldn't go to waste. The birds ate what they wanted, and what had begun as a happy camping excursion ended as a sad night sobbing in the woods. None of them slept well.

In the morning, instead of enjoying a leisurely camp breakfast and only returning to Haven when they were ready, the women collected their belongings silently and returned as soon as they woke.

"All those wars, all those battles, and Tyke dies from a hunting expedition," said Whitestar.

"It is rather ironic," agreed Taia. "What are you going to do?"

"Nothing, right now. It's too fresh. The space in my mind that was reserved for Tyke is too raw. Maybe someday I'll bond with another bird; I am used to having two. But not now," said Whitestar.

"I thought that might be the case," said Taia. "I don't know if I even would bond again, if I lost Sera or Ryki; but certainly it would take a lot of time to decide to do so. In any case, perhaps we should take a vacation and go to the Vales for awhile to recover."

"That actually sounds like a wonderful idea," said Whitestar. "When do we leave?"

"As soon as the Council gives me permission," said Taia wryly. "Which is likely to be….never. But I will certainly address it with them as soon as we arrive in Haven."

When they arrived, they gave the horses a good brushing and settled them in the stable. The stable for the Shin'a'in horses more closely resembled the stable for the Companions than it did ordinary horses; ordinary horses had gates on their stalls, that were closed when the horse was in it. The people tending the horses had full control of when the horses were and were not allowed to roam the field. Companions, not being actual horses but rather people in the shape of horses, had no such locks; they had gates which they were able to open and close themselves to allow for privacy, but freedom. The stable for the Shin'a'in stables was largely the same as the Companions' stable, with gates that were almost always left open entirely but that the horses, being more intelligent than other lines, were able to learn to open and close on their own. They did not, however, have the same level of intelligence as Companions, so their stalls still had to be mucked out daily, rather than just have fresh straw delivered periodically.

Taia and Whitestar got themselves cleaned up as well, and Whitestar returned to their quarters with Syen to rest and recover. Taia made certain that Sera and Ryki were settled, and then went to find the Queen. One of the benefits of her rank, she supposed; when she had a problem, she could go directly to the monarch. She didn't have to send the message through the ranks and wait for a response. She found Selenay in her office as she had expected to, and was granted immediate audience.

"Tyke was killed," she began without preamble. "We went to the woods for a night away, and Tyke and a mountain cat ended up hunting the same rabbit. Tyke got the rabbit – but the cat got Tyke."

"Oh my goodness, that's terrible!" said Selenay. "How is Whitestar?"

"She's hanging in," said Taia. "But it's a traumatic loss. The bond isn't quite as soul-deep as a lifebond, or as your bond with the Companions; but it is a soul-level bond. It helps that she still has Syen. But we were hoping to be granted leave to go to the Vales for some recovery; it is doubtful that she would be up to teach any classes for the next moon, anyway."

"Hmm," said Selenay. "That poses a problem. We could do without Whitestar for a moon, I suppose; it is Midsummer, and class schedules are a bit lighter. But you are needed in Council. Any chance she could go, and you could stay?"

"No," said Taia. "In theory, of course we can be separated; but in practice, I will not agree to do so. I can, however, check in by Mindspeech daily, to whomever agrees to check in with me; it would have to be someone with the Gift. I cannot bespeak someone without it at that distance."

"Alright," said Selenay. "I think that will suffice. Daren will be your contact person; I don't want someone in the meeting who would not have otherwise been there. Too much possibility for information reaching people it shouldn't. Please don't take more than a moon, however."

"That is fair," said Taia. We will return in one moon. Thank you, your Majesty."

"Since when do you call me anything but my name?" asked Selenay.

"When you do me a favor," answered Taia.

She returned to her quarters. She and Whitestar packed what they thought they would need and quickly told Jacqui of their plans.

"Do you think you could take me with you?" she asked. "I'd like to return to the Plains, actually. I like it here, but I would like to at least visit my Clan; I'm not sure yet whether or not I will stay."

"Certainly," said Taia. "Pack what you can carry and get your horses, we're going to Gate within the next two candlemarks. We will meet you at the stable, ok?"

"Thank you," said Jacqui. "I'll be there. And – I'm sorry about Tyke."

Whitestar smiled. Jacqui went to her quarters to pack, and Taia looked at her lifebonded.

"If she stays on the Plains, I don't know who's going to look after the horses," she said. "I hate to be thinking selfishly, but that's going to be a challenge."

"Yes," said Whitestar. "I suppose we'll have to hire our own stableboy."

"That shouldn't be too difficult, but teaching him to handle Shin'a'in horses will take some time," said Taia.

"Well, that's a problem for when we return," said Whitestar. "One problem at a time."

They finished hauling their things to the stable. Jacqui arrived shortly after, and Taia began setting the Gate. Whitestar fed her energy, but the Gate was primarily Taia's work; Whitestar was distracted by her grief, and couldn't manage the focus required to build it. When it was set, the three women, the birds and Jacqui's horses ran through it. Taia and Whitestar took the same horses they had ridden on their ill-fated camping trip, but left the rest in Valdemar under Kerowyn's supervision. On the other side they arrived in k'Treva territory; not inside the Veil, but inside their territory.

"Can you find your way to the Plains from here, or do you need me to Gate you to Wolf Clan?" Taia asked Jacqui.

"I can find my way, certainly, but if you're willing and able I wouldn't say no to the Gate," answered Jacqui.

"I think I have the energy, if I use mostly Whitestar's," joked Taia. And so she built a second Gate to the edge of where she knew Wolf Clan would be at this time of year. When it was built, she and Whitestar hugged Jacqui and said their goodbyes quickly; Taia wasn't going to have the energy to hold a second Gate for long, whether or not she used Whitestar's. Jacqui herded her horses through the Gate – and was gone.

"Well," said Taia. "I am going to have quite the headache in a little while, and I imagine you will too."

"Yes," said Whitestar. "I can already feel it beginning, so let's get moving."

They did so. They arrived at the edge of the Veil a little after midday, and after brief greetings to Whitestar's family they went to their ekele and slept. The rest of their greetings could wait until morning.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter four**

"Oh my dear, I knew that if you went haring off to lands unknown something terrible would happen! Poor, poor Tyke!" cried Bluefeather, Whitestar's mother. Bluefeather had a tendency to be a little dramatic.

"Mother, as terrible as it was, it was a hunting accident. It could just as easily have happened here," Whitestar replied, for what seemed like the hundredth time. She looked at her father, Hawkwind, for his assistance.

"Whitestar is right, dear," he said. He was the stoic one, the rational one. They were a good balance to each other. "Hunting accidents are even more common here, in the Pelagiris; one could argue that being in faraway lands prolonged the poor bird's life."

"Oh, but it's just terrible!" continued Bluefeather. "Terrible, I tell you! You will see now, I'm sure, dear Whitestar – you must stay here. You must not leave us again."

"Mother, that will not be possible," said Whitestar, a bit exasperated with her mother. "Our home is in Valdemar; we are needed there. Taia commands the army, and both of us teach a great many classes; we must stay there. I came here for respite; please don't make it an arguing match instead."

That stopped Bluefeather in her tracks, and the rest of the time spent with her mother left Whitestar feeling refreshed, rather than attacked. There were of course the requisite feasts; the Tale'edras loved any excuse to have a celebration, and the return of two of their most famous members certainly qualified. Taia and Whitestar spent their days riding around the Vale territory, renewing their tree-running skills, and reconnecting with old friends – and their children. Taia realized that when she left a place, in her mind the people there stayed exactly where and how she left them; but that wasn't true, of course. The people in other places had lives that continued just as hers did; they aged, they had children, they died…..all without her being present to see it.

"Do you suppose you'll want to bond to another bird?" Taia aske Whitestar one evening in their ekele as they lay watching the stars.

"I don't know," said Whitestar. "Tyke was my first bondbird, he'd been with me since I was a teenager. I don't know how I could ever replace him. But at the same time, I am very used to having two birds, at this point, and while Syen is wonderful….I rather miss having a bird I can carry, if only for short periods!"

"She is quite large, isn't she?" Taia laughed. Syen made a chortling sound from her perch; she was amused as well.

 _:Should bond again:_ Syen said to Whitestar. _:I lonely. You lonely. Need new bird. Tyke would want us to bond again.:_

"Well that settles it," said Whitestar. "Syen wants another bird, I'm leaning that direction; I guess I'll be bonding again before we leave!"

"With what kind of bird, do you think?" Taia asked. "Another forestgyre? Something smaller, perhaps?"

"Oh, I'm not sure. I like forestgyres, though; I think if there are any available, I'll probably see if one will bond with me. Otherwise, maybe a falcon of some kind," said Whitestar.

They continued their respite, visiting with old friends during the day, riding out into the forest, spending time together uninterrupted at night. And of course, the baths. They spent a good deal of time languishing in those baths.

"I have got to make us one of these back in Haven," said Taia.

"I'm pretty sure Firesong already did," said Whitestar. "Not as elaborate, but he did make one. Of course, it's not being used and the heating of it hasn't been tended to, but we should go find it again and make use of it."

"We've lived in Valdemar now for how long, and you're only just now telling me this?" asked Taia. "How could you be so cruel?"

Whitestar laughed. "Well, at this point, it's just a pool of water with good seats. I don't see any reason we can't find it and recreate the heat, though."

"We must," said Taia. "We simply must."

"Did I hear my name?" said a familiar voice, and following it – a familiar person.

"Firesong!" exclaimed Whitestar. "What are you doing here?"

"I heard from some of the scouts that my favorite cousin was home for a spell, and I decided I absolutely must visit. How are you doing, dear cousin? And my other cousin, Taia?" said Firesong.

"I am well, Firesong, and it's so good to see you!" said Taia. "We are here because Whitestar lost Tyke to a hunting accident a while back, and we needed some respite time."

"Oh, dear, that's awful. I cannot imagine losing Aya, he has been a part of me for so very long. How are you handling it, Whitestar?" replied Firesong.

"Well, it helps that I still have Syen," said Whitestar. "But I will always feel his loss. I miss his clowning around, his efforts to keep up with his larger companions! Who would have thought a forestgyre would have trouble with being the smallest!"

Tale'edras forestgyres were large enough that they could take down a deer when they wanted to – but eagles were much larger. And Taia's hawk-eagle and owle-eagle, while smaller than Syen, were still larger than a forestgyre. Still, most of the Tale'edras birds were much smaller than a forestgyre, and most mages didn't fly anything larger than a falcon; Whitestar had been different in bonding with a serious raptor, particularly since at the time she hadn't had any aspirations beyond being a Vale Healing Adept. She certainly couldn't have believed herself to have been in need of a hunting bird like the scouts flew, much less one that could be of aid in a real battle. But Tyke had seen her right away when she came to find a baby bird to bond to, and he had been determined; Whitestar was his.

"What is new with the Kale'da'in cousins, Firesong?" asked Whitestar.

"Oh, nothing, really," said Firesong. "The same old things; new babies, new romances, but the same old monsters to slay. I must say, as much as I disliked the uncivilized Valdemarans, at least it was an adventure!"

"We all make sacrifices, don't we?" joked Taia. "I can tell you right now, I would sacrifice all the adventure in the world for one of these baths!"

"Well, Whitestar is right, I did make one in Haven," Firesong said. "Feel free to re-activate it."

"If I ever get around to forgiving her for not telling me in the first place!" laughed Taia.

The three spent time telling stories of their doings for the previous ten years. Taia thought how lovely it was to spend time reconnecting with family; they really should make it a point to do this more often. They had, of course, been back to the Vales since the war; but not more than a handful of times. Time went by so quickly when the days were full of responsibility. She wished she had had the foresight to arrange for some time on the Plains, as well; although, there weren't so many people to visit there, anymore. She had never been close to anyone in Wolf Clan other than her sister, Brandi, and Jacqui; her own Clan, having rejected her as a child, she had never felt comfortable there even when her banishment had been eased. Her younger sister, Andrien, had made a lot of progress as an elder to return Pretera'sedrin to a 'normal' Shin'a'in Clan, but her mother was still there. Taia had no wish to see her; nor did she wish to see their shaman, An'desha. An'desha had replaced the heretical shaman she had grown up with, and by all reports was a good man and a help to her Clan – but his was the body that Mornelithe Falconsbane had inhabited when Taia was held his prisoner, and while An'desha was certainly not the same man who had abused and tortured her, he had the same eyes. Taia could not stand being around him; the memories were too painful. Her other sister Kiri was Swordsworn, and despite being her twin they had never been close. It would have been nice to see her, but where? It would have to wait until they could meet at Kata'shin'a'in some time, perhaps for trading horses. Maybe next year.

Whitestar yawned. "I think it's time to return to the ekele," she said. "Otherwise, I might fall asleep here and dissolve."

"Goodnight, cousin," said Firesong. "I shall see you in the morning."

"Goodnight," Taia said. She and Whitestar got out of the bath and dried off with the towels provided by the hertasi – another thing Taia and Whitestar missed about the Vales. Hertasi; the lizard-like people who assisted the Tale'edras by providing meals, cleaning services, laundry and mending in return for physical protection both by the weather-controlled Vale and against attackers. The palace had plenty of pages acting as servants, and certainly employed laundry services and cooks; however, nothing could quite replace the hertasi, who seemed to anticipate their every wish and provide for it without even being seen. It was easy to be spoiled in the Vales. The mages earned it, though, by spending every last drop of their energies cleansing the lands around them from the damage done by the long-ago Mage Wars. Their work was largely mental, rather than physical; but it was just as draining.

The next morning, the women went over to a particular ekele. Taia recalled coming here when she had only just been adopted by the Vale; it was the ekele where the bondbirds were born. She remembered being nervous and excited; she had known she wanted a raptor, she had known she preferred either a hawk-eagle or an owl-eagle and had been unable to decide between the two. She hadn't been certain that there would be a bird of either species willing to bond with her, a Shin'a'in, not even a Tale'edras by birth; but there had been one tiny, fuzzy little bird of each of them who wanted her. She remembered their fuzzy little selves trying to make themselves look big and important as they argued between themselves which would have her, and she remembered them finally reporting that they would share; she sent a wave of love and affection to Sera and Ryki at the memory, and received theirs in turn.

 _:Was good day.:_ said Sera.

 _:Yes. Good day. Bond with good human. Make good bird friend.:_ agreed Ryki.

 _:It has been a great adventure, hasn't it? And it's been better for the two of you.:_ said Taia.

They arrived at the ekele. Whitestar was a bit hesitant; she would always miss Tyke. She wasn't sure what it would be like, bonding to a new bird. But she was used to having two; and Syen was eager for a new friend, as well. But there was no need for her nervousness; even if she succeeded in bonding to another forestgyre, there was no replacing Tyke.

When they arrived, Whitestar went in alone while Taia waited at the base of the tree. Whitestar entered the ekele, which was full of various large nests, each containing baby bondbirds of a variety of species; hawk-eagles, owl-eagles, sun falcons and peregrines, and – one nest of forestgyres. During other parts of the year, there might be nests of hawks, owls, eagles, and other birds; it all depended on when the parent birds had decided to mate. Whitestar sat down on the floor of the ekele and projected a desire to bond with a new bird; the bird had to agree to bond to her. She could not simply pick a bird and create the bond. She sat patiently, and after about a candlemark, a tiny little forestgyre that had been staring at her quite intently for some time hobbled over on his tiny baby feet.

 _:Lost bird.:_ he said to her.

 _:Yes.:_ she replied.

 _:You are very sad.:_ he said.

 _:Yes.:_ said Whitestar.

 _:You have other bird._ : he said accusingly.

 _:Yes. Syen.:_ said Whitestar, sending a picture of Syen with the thought. _:But still I am lonely for another.:_

 _:Others are selfish. They want bondmate all to themselves. I think they are afraid.:_ said the tiny forestgyre. Whitestar was surprised at his assessment of the other birds' motives; the intelligence of the birds was much greater than their wild counterparts, but still surprising at times.

 _:You are not?:_ she inquired.

 _:No. Why should I be afraid? Syen is eagle. Very big. Very distant flyer. I am forestgyre. Different. Do not need to compete; not the same.:_ he said, with every confidence that only a raptor could possibly have.

 _:Will you bond with me, then?:_ Whitestar asked. The tiny bird turned his head sideways for a minute and stared at her, very intently, directly into her eyes. Whitestar stared back, knowing the bird was measuring her, deciding whether or not he found her to be sufficient.

 _:Yes. I am Jyus. I bond with you. I be friends with Syen.:_ he said. And that was that; the bond was formed. Jyus would stay in the nest for the next sennight while Whitestar and Taia remained in the Vale, but would make the trip back to Haven with them when it was over.

Whitestar returned back down to where Taia – and all the rest of the birds – were waiting anxiously.

"Well?" asked Taia.

"His name is Jyus, and he is a forestgyre. He is adorable, and so smart!" Whitestar said.

"That is wonderful!" said Taia.

"He's excited to meet you, too, Syen. He thinks you will be impressed by him," said Whitestar.

 _:I shall let him believe that I am.:_ said Syen, obviously pleased. _:It will be good to have him. Too quiet without Tyke. Need other voice.:_

Whitestar and Taia were both again surprised by Syen's appreciation of the relationship she had had with Tyke, and her willingness and excitement to have one with Jyus. The family would now be complete again.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter five**

"I suppose I should try to visit my sisters while we're away from Haven," said Taia the morning after Whitestar bonded with Jyus.

"I know you'd been thinking about it, but I thought you'd decided it impossible," said Whitestar.

"Well," said Taia, "If we left tomorrow, we could visit both of them for a day or two and then Gate back to Haven from there. Kiri just happens to be visiting Pretera'sedrin at the moment; I found her with Farsight. As much as I don't particularly relish seeing An'desha…..I shouldn't avoid seeing my sisters just because of him."

"Alright," said Whitestar. "You pack. I'll go tell my parents and make sure Jyus is ready for the trip."

Bluefeather was characteristically not happy that Whitestar was leaving the Vale again. Apparently, she was never going to understand that Whitestar would not ever live there permanently again; well, maybe if they lived to be old enough to retire, but certainly not now. Hawkwind wished his daughter a safe journey and then turned his attention to calming his wife.

"My dear," he began, "Please get ahold of yourself. Whitestar and Taia do not live here. Their services are needed elsewhere. They have not lived here in over twenty years. One would imagine that you would accept this by now."

"How can I accept it?" Bluefeather wailed. "My baby is haring off to parts unknown, to dangerous foreign lands and she may never return!"

"She could live here every day, go out to rid the forest of a _wyrsa_ and never return," said Hawkwind. "And Valdemar is hardly 'parts unknown'. They are different from us, certainly, but they are civilized. She will be as safe there as she is here."

Whitestar kissed her parents on the cheek and left the ekele. She had to find her brother, Greyhawk, before they left. She and her brother were not particularly close, but they weren't exactly 'not close', either. They didn't talk much, unless there was actually something to say. They didn't spend a lot of time together, even when they had both lived in the Vales; Whitestar had been in training to be a Healing Adept, and a powerful one. Greyhawk had only an average Mindspeech Gift, and nothing more in the way of true magic; he had become a scout and spent most of his time patrolling the territory outside the Vale. But each of them knew, even though their lives were very different, if one had need of the other, they would come.

"Leaving so soon, then, little sister?" asked Greyhawk when Whitestar caught up with him.

"We had planned on staying another sennight, but Taia wants to visit her sisters on the Plains. We have to leave in the morning in order for her to do that," Whitestar replied.

"Well, that certainly makes sense," said Greyhawk. "Your days are full of responsibility at Haven; I imagine it's difficult to get leave. You should of course see her sisters while you're in the relative area."

"Exactly," said Whitestar.

"Just do me a favor," said Greyhawk. "Find some way to keep up your tree-running skills in Haven, you've really slipped!"

They both laughed. There weren't a lot of trees in Haven, and certainly not many large enough to practice tree-running.

"I'll do my best," said Whitestar.

The siblings embraced and said their goodbyes. Whitestar headed toward the ekele where Jyus was. When she reached it, she clambered up the rope ladder and looked for him.

 _:Miss me already?:_ came an impish mindvoice, and the tiny ball of fluff it belonged to bounced out of his nest and waddled over to her.

 _:Of course.:_ said Whitestar. _:But I have a question.:_

 _:Question?:_ asked Jyus. _:What?:_

 _:Are you ready to leave the nest?:_ asked Whitestar.

Jyus cocked his head sideways while he considered the question. It was true that most bondbirds did not leave the nest while they were so young. But that was largely because their humans weren't generally up to the task of feeding and caring for a baby bird; they wanted the bird to be a partner, not a child. But most people only had the one bondbird. Whitestar had Syen, and Jyus knew that Whitestar's bonded had two birds of her own.

 _:I am not yet able to hunt.:_ he said. _:Is Syen or the others willing to hunt for me?:_

 _:Yes.:_ said Whitestar. She had asked Syen along the way whether or not it was possible to take Jyus from the nest so soon, and Syen had indicated her willingness to play 'mother'. She had also indicated that both Ryki and Sera were also willing to help.

 _:Then I will come.:_ said Jyus. _:We leave when?:_

 _:We leave the Vale in the morning.:_ answered Whitestar. _:Perhaps you should come to our ekele now.:_

Jyus thought about it for a moment, then agreed. Whitestar gathered him up and carried him down the rope ladder and over to her ekele, where Taia had just finished packing.

"Look who I brought with me," said Whitestar.

"Well, isn't he adorable!" said Taia. Jyus looked at her with an expression of pure indignation; he was not adorable. He was fantastic.

His fuzzy baby-feathers were warm enough for the Vale, but not for the road. So Whitestar took a rabbit skin and fashioned a 'coat' for him to wear; he was quite put out by having to wear it, but it was either that of pneumonia, which was often fatal to birds. He would just have to put up with it.

"Sera and Ryki are out scouting our path, but they will be so excited to meet you when they return, Jyus," said Taia.

"He says he is excited to meet them as well," said Whitestar. "And he asks that you please tell them thank you for their help."

"Oh, they are delighted to help," said Taia. She didn't mention that this was because Sera in particular had never been able to have a nest, and so was excited to have the opportunity to care for a baby; it would have injured poor Jyus' dignity.

There was, of course, the requisite feast for their departure; Tale'edras would use any opportunity to throw a party. The hertasi complained about planning yet another party on short notice, but secretly they loved it. It gave them more opportunity to stretch their abilities and impress their human compatriots. Taia and Whitestar enjoyed themselves at this one, as they had all the others; it gave them a chance to visit with everyone they hadn't had a chance to see yet. There weren't actually very many people they still knew, though. Lightwind, Snowowl, all of their mage instructors when they were children had passed long ago; but they could get to know their children. And the singing of the tervardi was always lovely.

The next morning they set off riding towards the Plains. "I feel like that time when we were teenagers, setting off on that first sennight-long vacation," said Whitestar.

"Me too," said Taia. "Although I hope we don't run into any bandits this time, I've gotten rather used to only swinging my sword in a practice salle!"

"I have to agree," said Whitestar. "Look at us, a couple of old mercs hoping we don't have to swing swords at anything actually alive!"

"Some warrior I turned out to be," joked Taia.

They spent a few days traveling, camping in the Pelagiris – dangerous for anyone unfamiliar with it or unable to defend themselves, but safe enough for a couple of Adept Mage warriors. The adult birds hunted for all of them; the horses would be fine on just grass. Despite being out of practice, they reverted easily to their old habits; Whitestar cooked while Taia set up camp and saw to the horses. They all enjoyed getting to know Jyus, and Jyus enjoyed the freedom of being a bondbird away from the nest – even though he could not yet fly. Whitestar carried him in a pouch with a strap around her neck; this was easily created by threading some deerhide straps, ordinarily used for sword wrappings, through small holes in his rabbitskin coat. Sometimes Jyus faced forward; sometimes back, but he enjoyed the ride either way.

After two days of riding, they arrived on the edge of the Plains. They descended the steep dropoff; only a Shin'a'in could even find them. When they reached the bottom, as they always did upon arrival to the Plains, they took off at a full gallop. Taia particularly loved the exhilaration of riding across the Plains at full gallop; it was one of the things she had enjoyed most about her Shin'a'in childhood. She leaned back and closed her eyes, outstretched her arms; she felt the sun on her face and the wind through her hair. It felt like she was flying. It felt like complete and total freedom. No responsibilities, no battles, no classes, no painful joints, just wind and sun. Whitestar was next to her doing the same; even Jyus appeared to be enjoying the ride.

When they finally stopped, the horses were breathing hard and in a lather; they took them to the nearest stream and let them drink. They took off their packs and gave them a good brushing. They set up their tents; they were within easy distance of Pretera'sedrin from here, and since Taia still didn't feel comfortable staying with the Clan itself, this would do for a campsite. Her banishment had been lifted, but the memories never left. An'desha was there, as well, and her mother, Minka; Taia had no desire at all to see them. She had heard that since Kiri declared Minka Oathbreaker, Minka had significantly declined; no longer would the Clan acknowledge her presence. They would not answer when she spoke, they would not greet her, they would not recognize her name if someone mentioned it. They provided her with shelter and food, but that was all. At times, Taia felt sorry for her; Minka had been a very social woman, and to be deprived of even the barest interaction with her Clan would be torture. But Minka had earned every bit of it by banishing two of her daughters, one for being she'chorne and the other for being both that and a Mage. She had consigned Taia to a solitary tent and allowed the Clan to consider executing her as a witch, rather than following the Shin'a'in tradition of sending her to the Tale'edras to be trained or blocked as she chose. It was only because the first daughter, Brandi, had come to her rescue that Taia had survived at all. Minka had further, on the advice of the then-shaman, assisted him in making the Clan so perverted from their traditions that a third daughter, Kiri, Taia's twin, became Swordsworn rather than bring children into that Clan and the youngest – Andrien – had to relearn her people's traditions. The shaman had decreed that only herbal medicines be used, no Healing Gifts; it was unknown how many people died as a result. Minka was a pathetic creature these days; but she had earned her punishment.

While they were setting up camp, Sera and Syen hunted for the group while Ryki carried a message to Kiri that they were on the Plains and where to find them. Since Shin'a'in were active hunters, Ryki had to be careful not to look like a tempting meal; he flew high, out of arrow range, until he had located Kiri's tent and then dove straight down at it, making himself as small and as fast-moving target as he could. This used to be Tyke's job, as the smallest of the four, and the fastest; and someday, it would likely fall to Jyus. But for now, Ryki was the best choice. Syen was too big to not be tempting; and Sera, being an owl-eagle to Ryki's hawk-eagle, was a bit bigger and a better choice for hunting in the evenings. About a candlemark after Ryki returned, Taia and Whitestar heard hoofbeats approaching and looked up; they expected two horses, but saw three.

Riding next to Andrien was a man, about the same age. When they arrived at the campsite, all three dismounted. Taia was a little nervous; who was this man? She didn't have long to wait.

"Taia, Whitestar," began Andrien, "I would like to introduce you to my husband, Jarik."

"Greetings," said Jarik. "I have heard much about you; it is good to finally meet you."

"Well, we haven't heard boo about you, Jarik, but it's good to meet you as well!" exclaimed Whitestar with a smile.

"I didn't even get to determine whether or not you were good enough for my baby sister, so I hope Kiri did! Nice to meet you, Jarik. And just so you know, you could never be good enough for my baby sister, but that's a flaw everyone shares!" joked Taia.

Andrien grinned. "Kiri did, in fact, give him a thorough interrogation, I will have you know!"

"I did," said Kiri. "And while you're correct in that no one could ever be good enough for our baby sister, Jarik comes as close as anyone possibly could!"

"She did," said Jarik with a smile. "But I'm glad to see that you agree, that no one could be good enough for Andrien! I will do my best, though."

They all laughed and sat down around the campfire, where the deer that Syen had brought down had finished roasting. Taia couldn't believe that it had been so long since she'd seen her sisters that one of them had gotten married and she hadn't even known; but on the other hand, she wasn't terribly surprised. She hadn't been able to visit the Plains more than a handful of times since the war; it seemed the Companions were working overtime to Choose new Heralds and replenish those that had been lost. And there had been an enormous loss of Heralds, a higher percentage even than the regular army, which had lost two-thirds of its number; a full three-quarters of the Heralds had been lost. The fact that Heralds were remarkably self-sacrificing was one reason, but also those ridiculous white uniforms made them an obvious target. Taia had tried to no avail to get them to at least consider wearing greys, if she couldn't get them to wear the same blue and white of the regular army.

The increased number of newly Chosen had increased the number of classes, but decreased the number of instructors as many of those had also been lost in battle. Taia had been even busier than before the war and had precious little time off to travel; and what time they did have had to be divided between the Plains and the Vale. So – it was sad, but obvious, why she hadn't been a part of Andrien's wedding. It didn't explain why she hadn't heard by letter, though.

"Why didn't you tell me about this fellow in your letters?" Taia asked.

"I'm sorry about that," began Andrien. "I wanted to surprise you. The amount of time it took to accomplish that, though, was longer than I anticipated. I didn't mean to make you feel excluded, though. I knew you wouldn't be able to come for the ceremony and didn't want you to feel guilty, so I decided to surprise you on your next visit instead, thinking it would only be a few moons. Unfortunately, we've been married for a year!"

"Oh my goodness, a whole year?" exclaimed Whitestar. "That must have been a hard secret to keep!"

"It was," smiled Andrien. "You're not mad? I really was well-intentioned, just not well-executed!"

"No, sister, I'm not mad," said Taia. "I'm just sorry I can't make it here more often."

"We know you and Whitestar have important work to do," said Kiri. "The next war could happen at any moment, and if we have no trained soldiers to meet it, we will be destroyed. Your work keeps that risk to a minimum."

That was certainly true; and with the threat from the Eastern Empire, Taia and Whitestar felt the need to complete that work more intensely than ever. There just weren't enough people ready to go into uniform yet. There would be, but it takes several years to train a youngster to be a soldier. They had had to start from scratch after the war, and with younger enlistees than Taia would have liked; anyone reporting for service aged sixteen and up had been accepted out of necessity for the war, and precious few had survived. Afterwards, instead of enlistees starting at fifteen, they had been forced to accept them as young as twelve, just to ensure that they would be able to field an army of any capability should it be necessary within a generation. Taia didn't like to graduate anyone to full soldier duties until they turned eighteen. She had allowed some talented students to become guards until they finished their training, freeing up some of the of-age guards for other military duties, but that was as far as she would bend.

She never wanted to see so many young faces on a battlefield again. There were too many lost burned into her memory as it was.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter six**

"Kiri, remember when we were children and you accidentally shot an arrow into the Elder's tent?" asked Taia. They were sitting around the campfire exchanging memories.

"Yes, and he saw me, but I swore I was you!" laughed Kiri.

"I lost a moon of bow training from that!" accused Taia, jokingly.

"It was all a scheme to let me catch up to your level!" said Kiri.

"Brandi always knew, though. She never did have any trouble telling us apart," said Taia.

"I miss her," said Kiri.

"Me too," said Taia.

"I, on the other hand, also have no trouble telling you apart," said Andrien.

"Well, duh, you have no memory of us until Taia came back all grown up," said Kiri.

"That's not true!" said Andrien. "I remember you quite clearly from before. I just – "

"Don't remember getting us confused?" joked Taia. "Because you did. And we played you for it, too!"

They all laughed.

"Andrien, how is Minka?" Taia asked quietly.

"She's…..a shadow of herself," said Andrien. "When she had the ear of the whole Clan, however much damage it did to the Clan she's a very social person, or at least she wants to be. It's really unfortunate that she used those gifts of hers to poison it, rather than strengthen it."

"She does have a way of persuading people," said Kiri. "I wonder if that's the reason the old shaman used her to spread his philosophies."

"Likely," said Taia. "It is likely he was an Empath, or a Thoughtsenser; it would have been easy for him to figure out which Clan member was the most likely to be persuaded by his ideas, and which was the most likely to persuade the others."

"And with your mother being a lonely widow with four daughters to raise alone – she would have been very susceptible to his 'charm'," said Whitestar.

"Anyway, she has lost quite a bit of weight. She's a shrunken version of herself. She spends almost all of her time in her tent," says Andrien. "She goes out for a ride on her favorite horse now and again, but other than that no one really sees her."

"As was the intent of my pronouncement," said Kiri. "As sad as it is to see her in her current state, I have visited with her on a few occasions. Were she to abandon her hatred and her heretical beliefs, I would lift her restrictions; but she will not. And they caused too much damage to the Clan the first time around, I won't have her twisting it again. It would be easier the second time, even with An'desha as the new shaman; after all, they went down that path once, and for many that is what is familiar to them. It is too dangerous."

The sisters sighed collectively. They knew that Kiri was correct; it would be too dangerous for the Clan as a whole to lift Minka's restrictions, but it was still hard to think of their mother, a once vibrant and powerful woman, as she was now. She had used her persuasiveness, her vibrancy, for hatred and cruelty; but it wasn't entirely her fault. The shaman had used her loneliness and her need for purpose beyond her children for his own purposes. Still, she had allowed it; she could just have easily used her own strength and persuasiveness to save the Clan rather than to help destroy it.

They spent the last few days of Taia and Whitestar's trip reminiscing, hunting, and just riding aimlessly across the Plains. Jarik joined them sometimes, but most of the time he stayed behind and let the sisters reconnect without him. Secretly, Taia thought he found herself and Whitestar intimidating, and she could hardly blame him; there were far too many stories and bardic songs about them and their exploits. Not nearly enough stories of their foibles and human failures. He was a good man, though; it was obvious he loved Andrien and took good care of her, so Taia had no complaints. Too soon, the day came that Taia and Whitestar had to Gate back to Haven; responsibility could take a vacation, perhaps, but it could never be escaped

"Goodbye, little sister," said Kiri. "Be safe."

"You too," said Taia. "It was so good to see you both."

"Don't get into too much trouble without me," said Andrien. "You know how I love haring off, riding to glory."

"You mean riding into chaos and danger, little sister!" said Taia. "No worries, I will be sure to drag you into whatever battle I manage to find!"

"It was wonderful to meet you," said Jarik. "I've heard so many tales and legends, it is good to be reminded that no matter how great the legend, you are also just a regular Shin'a'in, with childhood exploits just like the rest of us."

"Couldn't have said it better myself, Jarik," said Taia, smiling. "And always remember, when you hear one of those stupid stories – most of them are only partly true, and not the good part, either!"

"She's being modest, of course. She is every bit the legend the stories make her out to be!" said Andrien.

"Yeah, a legend with the painful joints and graying hair to show for it!" said Taia.

"Not to mention the ridiculous workload," said Whitestar. "We aren't going to make any promises on when we'll be able to visit again. It's likely to be awhile. However, if you would like to visit us, just send word. We'll Gate you to Haven."

"That's a generous offer," said Kiri. "We might take you up on it some time, I think I'd like to see Haven."

They embraced all around, and then Taia and Whitestar got ready to set the Gate. This time, Whitestar set the Gate and Taia fed her energy. They no longer had to set the terminus at the open field a day's ride away from the Palace; now, they could use the old arch in Companion's field like any Herald Mage would. When they arrived, they were both drained; however, it was only the fact that they could utilize both women's energy through the lifebond that enabled them to do it at all. There were very few mages left, after the mage storms, who could Gate at all; it required an Adept class mage, and the greater the distance the mage wanted to Gate, the more energy it required. Before the storms, the mage could replenish his energies easily from a node; but nodes no longer existed. Ambient energy was scattered, and collecting it was difficult. Mostly, the different classes of mage were unimportant now; since there were no nodes to collect energy from, it made no difference whether or not a mage had the potential to do so. The Tale'dras were creating ley-lines to feed their Heartstones, but outside their territory, even those lines didn't exist anymore; so it no longer mattered whether or not the mage could access those. Mages were limited to the energies they had within themselves; this made them all, essentially, Journeymen; the only difference was the amount of power the mage could hold.

When they had gotten their horses resettled in the stables, they went to find Kerowyn. She was, of course, in the salle teaching one of the last classes for the day. They waited patiently for her to finish, and when she did she dismissed the students and came over to them.

"Heyla," she said. "How was your trip?"

"Refreshing, and not long enough," Taia said.

"They never are," Whitestar agreed.

"That is certainly true," said Kerowyn. "I took the liberty of hiring a stablehand for your herd. His name is Dirn; he grew up on the Ashkevron lands caring for their horses. He's quite good; he knows how to keep the stable so that the horses can come in and out. I've had him working with me so that the herd knows him, but I have not given them the command to allow him to work with them himself. I thought I'd let you do that."

"Thank you," said Taia. "I would like to meet him in the morning, and if he proves as good as you say, I will give the horses the command."

"Unfortunately, there is a council meeting in the morning, so it might be best to meet him tonight," said Kerowyn.

"Of course there is," said Taia. "Very well, where can I find him?"

"I'll take you to him now," said Kerowyn.

"I will take our things to our rooms and get unpacked. I need to get Jyus settled," said Whitestar.

"I noticed that little fluffball, he's adorable," said Kerowyn.

:Not adorable. Am fierce.: Jyus said. Whitestar passed along his statement and all three struggled not to laugh; it would be rude.

Kerowyn took Taia to the royal stables. They walked to the rooms occupied by the stablehands, and Kerowyn knocked on one of them. After a moment, a small boy came to the door.

"'ello, miss," he said. "I be Dirn. Miss Kero said you'd be needin' a stablehand fir yir 'orses. I know I not be lookin' much, but I be older thin I look, an' stronger, too. An' I grew up takin' care of the Ashkevron 'orses, I be knowin' where not to put me 'ead! I be right honored to be takin' care of yers."

"Well, Dirn, if Kero says you're up to it, I trust her word. Come with me, I'll give them the command to let you work with them. You know we don't use bits, right? They're controlled by leg commands and voice, not a bit?"

"Yes, miss. Kero taught me on 'ellsbane," Dirn said.

"Well, if you can handle a battlemare, you'll do just fine with my herd!" said Taia.

They walked over to the stable designated for her herd and Taia gave the command to each horse that indicated that Dirn was to be allowed to groom them, ride them, clean their stables. Without that command, unless Dirn came to the stables with someone the horses recognized as 'Clan', they would kill him on sight. There was one stall left empty at the end of the stable, one with a door on it for humans; it was designed to serve as living quarters for the stablehand. It had a tiny privy attached and a small cookstove along with a bed, a small table and a trunk for clothing. The cookstove was actually an interesting contraption; the actual fire-containing portion was outside the stable. Fire, straw and a barn full of horses was a bad combination, generally. The stove heated a brick-lined 'box', with a door on the side facing Dirn's living quarters. There was even a lever to close the cookstove's chimney, so that if an accident occurred, the air supply would be cut off and help put the fire out before there was any danger. There was a loft above for storage, or it could be used for the table or trunk if he cared to move any additional furniture to the main room; he could alternatively use it as a sleeping area, and many stablehands did just that. Taia handed Dirn the key, and they agreed on his wages. Taia then returned to her own rooms while Dirn got started hauling his belongings to his new home.

When she arrived back in her own quarters, she was pleased to find that Whitestar had not only unpacked all of their own belongings and gotten Jyus settled on his perch, but she had also asked a page to deliver them dinner. She wasn't ready to go to the kitchens and see all the people just yet; she wanted one more night to just relax and enjoy Whitestar. So they drank their willowbark tea for the reaction headaches that were beginning to form from the Gate building and ate their dinner – and then went to the bed to do just that.

The next morning, Taia got up and dressed for the council meeting. Whitestar got up and headed over to Healer's Collegium to see if she could help out there; their classes wouldn't resume until after midday. Selenay had wanted to hold a council meeting immediately upon their return; Kerowyn had actually had to convince her to wait until morning, or it would have likely been held at the Gate terminus itself. Taia wondered what could possibly be so urgent; she had kept up with Daren via Mindspeech every day, as promised, and nothing seemed to be urgent enough for an immediate council meeting. Daren, however, had a tendency to actually allow people to enjoy their respite without drawing them into business other than an actual emergency, so it was entirely likely that something had been left out.

"Good morning," began Selenay when everyone had arrived. "Welcome back, Taia, we trust you enjoyed your respite. The Eastern Empire shows definite signs of being ready to attack Hardorn in earnest; this being the beginning of fall, we expect them to continue to skirmish until spring. They likely believe they could conquer the country before winter, and we hope they don't realize how correct that belief would be; but they made that mistake last time with Tremane. It was the mage storms that stopped him, but they don't want to get stuck in winter again. So. In your absence, Taia, we have decided to move forward with the plan to send an assassin, and we have decided you are our best option."

Taia couldn't say she was surprised. She had been expecting this from the moment she brought up the possibility.

"Very well, your majesty," she began. "When do we leave?"

"In a fortnight," Selenay replied. "We want you in position to strike as early in the spring as possible.

:We will discuss the details in private.: said Daren.

:I figured.: said Taia.

"Very well," said Taia.

The meeting concluded quickly after that. Taia, Daren and Selenay remained, but they removed themselves to Selenay's private office with orders to not be disturbed unless the Palace was actually collapsing around them.

"We're not sending you alone," said Daren.

"Well, of course not," said Taia. "I don't go anywhere without Whitestar."

"That's not what we meant," said Selenay. "We're sending Juren with you."

"Juren would likely get us caught," said Taia. "Those great big white horses you all ride, it's not like we can camouflage Lyesa. We might as well just announce our presence."

"Lyesa will not be going," said Selenay.

"What?" exclaimed Taia. "A Herald is going, but not his Companion?! How do you expect that will work?"

"Lyesa will be remaining just on the Hardornen side of the border," began Daren. "She will be the link to communicate progress back to Haven. If you need to get out of there fast, she can cross and come for Juren; but we believe Juren's presence will be absolutely crucial."

"Why?" asked Taia.

"His Thoughtsensing," said Selenay. "He can't shut it off. He can shield with great effort, but his Gift is so powerful that we believe should you be discovered, his Gift will let you know far before anything else could."

"Whitestar and I are both strong Empaths," said Taia. "Should we be discovered, our own Gifts should be sufficient to warn us; the more people you send on this mission, the more likely that becomes."

"But how will you communicate your progress with us?" asked Daren.

"Mindspeech," said Taia. "I can reach you from there. It's not any farther than the Plains, and I did just fine from there. There is no need for Juren. I'm sure he's going to be a wonderful Herald, but I don't see why you want to cripple this mission by sending too many people on it."

"You had to sit and focus, though, to communicate by Mindspeech at that distance, right?" said Selenay. Taia faltered for a moment.

"Yes, but I don't see….." she began.

"Juren does not have to sit and focus to communicate disaster to Lyesa, even from that distance. If the mission fails, you will not have time to sit and focus in order to inform us. And we will need every possible moment to coordinate and raise an army to even try to counter their attack following that failure," said Selenay.

"Well, that's true, but I still think we should make plans in expectation to make the mission more likely to succeed!" said Taia.

"So do we," said Daren. "But we need to give ourselves the best possibility of success in the event of war, too."

"Alright," said Taia. "So what's our cover going to be?"

"Stablehands," said Daren. "You're going to be stablehands. Can you and Whitestar illusion yourselves male?"

"I suppose," Taia said, wrinkling her nose. She didn't like that idea. She wasn't sure she was going to like this plan, not one bit.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter seven**

The plan was decided. Taia and Whitestar would illusion themselves male. They would layer illusions; in a land accustomed to using magic, as the Eastern Empire was, any illusion would be noticed and suspicious. But layers of illusions could be done. If the layer that most people saw was of young men, and the one under it was one of older men, anyone looking to find out what the illusion was covering would see nothing but a couple of old men trying to pass as younger ones. That would make sense, and so they wouldn't be likely to proceed beyond that. Juren wouldn't need an illusion, of course, being already male; but they would give him one anyway, so his lack of an illusion wouldn't stand out in their group. They would even illusion the horses to look like ordinary horses; rather poor quality horses, to be precise. Stablehands didn't often have their own mounts at all, let alone good quality mounts. The birds would have to stay out of arrow range for the entirety of the trip; however, they would also have illusions to make them invisible.

They would ride first to Tremane's castle, to spend the winter learning how to speak the language, how to behave in an Empire civilization, how to best avoid discovery. Taia was grateful for that; it would take a moon to travel to Tremane's castle, and another moon to travel to the Empire. She did not want to be traveling during the winter any more than absolutely necessary, not with her arthritic joints. Particularly not with arthritic joints that had gotten quite used to not being outdoors much in the cold. Juren, despite Taia's protestation that he would be more hindrance than help to the mission, would be going without Lyesa; Lyesa would remain on the Hardornen border. It was close enough to the castle that she could reach Juren quickly, although it would take her more than a day. Selenay, however, thought it necessary to be able to notify the Heraldic circle immediately in the event of failure; this way, all Companions could be notified as soon as Lyesa reached Rolan with the information. Heralds out on circuit would be able to immediately begin recruitment, training and movement of troops for the inevitable war that would follow. Without Lyesa, they would have to depend on Taia being able to sit down and focus long enough to Mindspeak Daren. If Taia were killed in her attempt, Whitestar would quickly follow – and this would leave a significant delay in the information reaching Valdemar at all.

Taia supposed she could see that point. If she were killed, Valdemar may not even receive notice of any kind until the Eastern Empire was marching on Hardorn. And while two Empaths likely would be able to sense their discovery at least as quickly as a mostly-shielded Thoughtsenser, it wasn't a guarantee. Still, she thought it would be an easier mission without Juren; hard enough to insert a team of two as assassins, harder still to insert three. She thought the added benefit and the added risk to be not worth the added person. It was not, however, her plan to change; so she simply made the best of it.

They spent their fortnight composing letters to the Plains and the Vale to be sent with the next messenger regarding the fact that they would be out of touch for the next year. It would likely not come as a surprise; their communication back and forth was somewhat unpredictable to start out with. They packed their belongings as lightly as possible; this was difficult, since they would be packing their winter gear as well as their spring, but stablehands arriving with both a mount and a pack animal would be immediately suspicious. It would be made somewhat easier by the fact that a good portion of their winter gear they could leave with Tremane, and some they could leave at the guard post where Lyesa would be stationed; and they would have four animals until they left Lyesa. So Juren's eventual mount would be the pack animal for all three of them until they reached the guardpost.

"This is going to be one of the strangest missions we've ever undertaken," said Whitestar.

"I was thinking the same thing," said Taia. "I've acted as assassin before with the Fire Eagles, but rarely. And the fact that we're going to an Empire that we really don't know much about in order to do so gives me the creeps."

"Me too," said Whitestar. "Do we have all the gear we'll need? I don't want to overpack, but I don't want to forget anything, either."

"Weapons, winter cloak, boots, hat, gloves, leggings; tent – the small one – with bedrolls and blankets. Spring clothing, a minimal amount of camp cooking equipment. A few herbs for medicine, some for spice, and a bag for travel rations. I don't think we can get by on less, and I don't think we need anything more," said Taia.

"Armor?" asked Whitestar. "Will we need armor?"

"I don't see why we would. We're going as assassins, which won't require a long drawn out battle but rather a single, swift strike; armor won't be needed for that. I'm not even bringing the warbow, just a small hunting bow. I'll whittle arrows as we need them," said Taia.

"Good idea," said Whitestar. "Most of our travel was for an actual war – that's what I'm used to packing for!"

"Me too," said Taia. "At least as much as I'm used to packing at all, anymore."

Soon enough, the fortnight was passed. They wrapped up their classes where they could and found the students they worked with a different instructor to work with. This was difficult; the group classes were easy enough, the students just needed to be integrated into different groups. But the courses they were teaching with individual students, they were teaching them because there wasn't another instructor capable of teaching the particular skill the student was learning. One of those students was a young Herald Mage trainee named Muriel. She was going to be very powerful; powerful enough that she needed to be trained by a mage of significant ability, which was why Taia was training her. Darkwind or Elspeth may have been able to accomplish the task, but Darkwind had his hands full with the students he already had and didn't think he could adequately manage them plus Muriel. Elspeth was on a visit to a Rethwellan town in her capacity as ambassador, and therefore unavailable.

"Muriel," Taia began during one of their lessons, "how do you feel about traveling to k'Sheyna Vale?"

"What? Why?" Muriel asked. She was a high-strung child, easily anxious. It was part of why her mage training had to be so exact; reacting out of startlement could be dangerous in anyone, but for someone capable of leveling a city with one startled thought it was crucial.

"Because as you know, I have to leave in a few days on a mission for the Crown," said Taia calmly. "Your lessons must continue, but Whitestar or I are the only people currently in Haven able to train you. Since we will both be gone for almost a full year, I would like to send you there to have your training completed by Whitestar's cousin, Firesong."

"Firesong?" squeaked Muriel. "Firesong k'Treva? I've heard of him, he's – "

"Quite the flamboyant character, but quite a powerful mage and an excellent teacher," finished Taia. "I have already spoken with him, and he is willing to take you on if you are willing to go. It will postpone some of your other classes, but those are more easily made up than mage lessons."

"Ok," said Muriel hesitantly. "If you really believe it's necessary…."

"I do," said Taia. "We will Gate you there before we leave, so there will be no time lost and no opportunity for problems along the way. Now. Ground and center; it is time to learn to defend yourself. Shields up!"

Taia spent the next few candlemarks ruthlessly sending fireballs, lightning bolts, whatever mage attack she could think of – and she had quite the repertoire – at Muriel, while correcting her flawed defenses until Muriel could counter every one effectively.

"Excellent work," said Taia. "Firesong will help you gain more finesse and confidence in your defenses, as well as no doubt teaching you a few more. Before I leave, I will teach you every attack I know; Firesong will also help drill you in those. He will also teach you new shielding techniques and help you practice and gain strength. I think you'll like him, he's very creative and you'll come back knowing things no other mage does – including me, he likes to experiment!"

"Well, I'm nervous about being in a strange place, with strange people, but Farrel says he'll help me adjust. I'm sure it will be a good experience," said Muriel.

"That's the spirit!" encouraged Taia. "And let me just tell you, you're going to love the baths!"

The last few days passed quickly. Taia and Whitestar finished their preparations, and Taia Gated Muriel to k'Sheyna Vale with detailed notes for Firesong about her Gifts, her strengths and weaknesses and where she was at in her teaching. She had no doubt that Firesong would check each and every aspect for himself, but that was only the mark of a good mage instructor. She would do the same for any student Firesong sent her, and while both of them were aware of that, it was still expected to send the information. She also sent instructions to Firesong to pass reports of Muriel's progress to Darkwind, so that Haven could keep tabs on her.

When the Gate was set, Muriel gasped; not only had she never seen a Gate before, but she'd never seen a Tale'edras Vale, either. Taia had set the Gate terminus right in the center of the Vale; partly, she knew Firesong would appreciate the show it would make to open the Gate at the most impressive part of the Vale and partly it was the only part she remembered clearly enough to set a Gate terminus. She had only been to k'Sheyna once, and only briefly, for the handfasting ceremony between Firesong and Silverfox a few years prior. It had been a shock that they had decided to have a ceremony of any kind; kestra'chern were notoriously single, choosing to maintain at least the appearance of availability to their clients to facilitate some of their more erotic treatment methods. However, after the war, both Silverfox and Firesong wanted to have an official commitment to each other; it was a common reaction to horrific wars to hold on to whatever the survivors had with both hands. Firesong was a peaceful man at heart; his participation in a war had scarred him, as war generally does, and Silverfox had been overwhelmed with the needs of his people following the war. Both of them needed a firm, public commitment and the security of a safe haven.

"Good luck, Muriel, and enjoy yourself," said Taia. "Now, off with you, this thing takes a lot of energy to hold!"

And with that, Muriel and Farrel, with all of her belongings strapped to his back while she walked, hurried through the Gate – to the waiting Firesong. Firesong was in full show, with a particularly flamboyant costume and mask on his face and his bird, Aya, on his shoulder. Taia grinned, she'd expected nothing less.

"Hello, cousin!" she called through the Gate. "You look well, thank you for your help!"

"Safe travels, dear cousins," said Firesong. "This should be quite entertaining!"

And with that, Taia had to let the Gate go; she had no more energy to give to it, and anyway, there was no more reason to hold it. She and Whitestar headed to Healers' to get some willowbark tea; they would have reaction headaches in a few candlemarks, and they wanted to be rid of them by morning when they left for their journey. While they were there, Whitestar finalized the plans for her Healing students to be transferred to other teachers. Healers' Collegium was finally recovered from the incredible overload of patients since the war, but notoriously slow in rearranging students with available teachers; primarily because those teachers were still recovering themselves from their recent overload of patients. The Healers themselves were also scarred from the treatment of so much trauma.

It was remarkable, Taia thought, that Healing the injuries inflicted by the war was taking as long as training replacements for the army. It was mostly MindHealing, though; physical injuries heal quickly, particularly with the Gifts of the Healers. MindHealing, however, and as Taia knew well, was indefinite. She sighed. It would be wonderful if war could be eliminated, but that would be unlikely to happen in her lifetime.

They met with Selenay and Daren for dinner, both to say their farewells and to get the last minute details of their mission finalized. Kerowyn joined them with Eldan, along with Darkwind, Talia and Dirk; they talked late into the night, retelling old stories and laughing until they cried. Taia would miss these people; she may have been born Shin'a'in, may have been adopted Tale'edras, but this was her family.

In the morning, she loaded up Kisten while Whitestar loaded Maleh. They loaded up the horse Juren would ride, a solid little dappled grey mare named Kiani, with their winter gear they would be using at Tremane's castle. Their weaponry they wore as usual, and Kisten carried their tent and bedrolls while Maleh carried the rest of their gear behind Whitestar. Jyus still rode in his carrying pouch, although he was learning to take short flights on his own. Juren would be carrying all of his own personal gear on Lyesa, except for his winter gear that Kiani carried for now. They loaded the horses so that when they left their winter gear with Tremane and Lyesa at the border, they would be able to carry everything they needed on their personal mounts without overburdening them, and without surprises about what they wouldn't be able to take after all. They met at the Palace Gate and it was time to go.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter eight**

As it turned out, Juren was quite the problematic travel companion. He couldn't ride all day without taking frequent breaks. He had such a fit about sleeping on a bedroll that Taia and Whitestar were obliged to make him a pallet of stuffed deerhide to cushion him. He was convinced that there were wild animals in his tent and kept the entire party awake fretting about it. He complained about being dirty and also about bathing in a river. He wouldn't hunt and was squeamish about helping to prepare whatever animal the birds or Taia provided for dinner. He complained about the quality of camp cooking but refused to help cook it himself. Lyesa was uncommonly silent and feigned ignorance when Taia asked her, pointedly, how she had ever expected such a boy to become a Herald in the field.

Taia was not certain she wouldn't kill the boy herself before they even reached Tremane's castle.

"So," she asked him one evening around the campfire as he grumbled about the lack of spicing on the pheasant Whitestar had cooked for him. Pheasant, coincidentally, was one of Whitestar's stronger dishes; it was spiced perfectly. "Grew up in a manor, apparently, did you?"

"Yes," said Juren. "I had expected a Heraldic appointment in Haven, perhaps teaching one of the judiciary courses."

"Were you unaware that even if you did get such an appointment, you would be assigned at least a year of field training?" asked Whitestar.

"I was hoping to do field training in Haven, with civilized people," grumbled Juren.

"You do realize that not only is a place like Haven, with it's large population, a singularly unpleasant place for someone with your Gift, but that the only people who get their field training in Haven are the Heirs?" said Taia.

"No," said Juren. "I didn't. But I do now. I hope this can qualify for my field training, I certainly don't want to live like this twice."

"You do realize we are not actually Heralds, and so therefore this will not qualify as your field training since we can't actually train you to be a Herald, right?" said Whitestar. She was equally annoyed by Juren's surliness and complaints; he complained about her cooking nightly. She was actually quite proud of her field cooking abilities; they had been the pride of the Fire Eagles, in their day, and any of their comrades had counted themselves honored to have been invited to share a meal she had cooked. They had already spent their own money on additional spices they didn't need just to try to make him happy without success, and spent entire days preparing deerhides and stuffing them with feathers, rags, whatever else they could find for his sleeping comfort.

"You don't think they'll make an exception?" asked Juren.

"No," said Taia. "They won't." Particularly since she didn't intend to give them a good report on his performance, but she kept that to herself. In fact, the first time she reported back to Haven she had a few choice words for them in insisting that Juren come along at all. She hadn't thought he would be of help, only hindrance, even if he performed well; but if this kept up, he would blow their cover before they even arrived.

"Listen up, Juren, and listen good," she began. "You may have been born in a manor, and perhaps your lessons at Collegium so far haven't managed to get it through your head that you are not going to be a Lord of anything anymore. You are going to be a Herald. But if you can't learn to live off the land without all this bellyaching? Whether or not you eventually get a position at Haven, you won't make a very good one. And an able-bodied, young, new Herald will not get an immediate posting in Haven, seeing as how they are short of field Heralds as it is. How are you going to teach trainees how to be field Heralds if you're so unwilling to do it yourself? It's long since time to grow up, and why your Companion hasn't been telling you this I don't understand, but if she won't, I will beat it into you before we reach Tremane's castle. And if you haven't gotten over yourself by the time we reach the border I will Gate you back to Haven myself, orders or no orders. And you can explain to the Queen exactly why. Is that clear?"

Juren looked angry, but he nodded.

"Good," said Taia. "Because tomorrow, you will prepare dinner for all three of us. You will set up your own tent, I will not do it for you ever again. You will bring your own firewood. You will start your own fire. Whitestar and I have done the work for all three of us thus far, but from now on? You're going to pull your weight. Tomorrow Whitestar and I are taking the night off. After that we will take turns. Is that clear?"

"But – " began Juren.

"No," said Taia. "No buts. This is not negotiable, you are not a child and it is time for you to stop behaving like one. You do this, or I Gate you home right now."

Juren got quiet. Then he got that vacant expression that Heralds get when they're Mindspeaking their Companions.

"Lyesa says you're right," he said sullenly. "She says she's surprised you waited this long. She's been telling me….well, she's been telling me the same things you've just said for a while now. So – I will try."

"Fine," said Taia.

She could go hungry for one night; she was not anticipating that Juren would make anything actually edible, having never cooked over an open flame before. Whitestar had done it for years, and what Juren didn't realize is that while the spices they brought along were certainly different and less plentiful than they had been at their hut back in the Fire Eagles, it was certainly better field cooking than most Heralds were capable of. But she would let Juren learn that for himself.

She was right; Juren failed to get his tent set up properly, and Taia knew it would collapse on him in the middle of the night. She supposed she could have helped him, but he hadn't been willing to learn when they started the trip and she'd tried to teach him, so he could learn the hard way. He collected the firewood, but it was green and took a long time to burn. The birds brought rabbits for dinner, and Taia was glad that they didn't bring down anything that took them more effort because Juren burned them to a crisp; but at least they weren't raw. It wasn't the first time Taia had eaten burnt rabbit. And sure enough, in the middle of the night she and Whitestar were awakened by Juren's hollering that his tent had collapsed.

"Now," said Taia. "Are you ready to learn how to set it up properly?"

"Yes," said Juren. Taia was pretty sure Lyesa was laughing. She could hear Whitestar snickering from inside their tent.

So Taia spent a candlemark showing Juren, finally, how to set up his own tent properly. The following day, she made up that candlemark sleeping in the saddle; she and Whitestar had told Juren that there would be no more unnecessary breaks. He could use the horse liniment on his aching muscles and finally get used to long periods of riding just like every Herald ever trained. That night, they finally started getting into a travel routine. They each cared for their own mount when they arrived, as always; but they began to rotate the care for Kiani, the packhorse that would be Juren's mount once Lyesa was left at the border. Tonight it was Juren's turn. Juren was also responsible for getting the firewood, so Taia made sure he knew how to collect only dry wood so that it would actually burn. It was Taia's turn to cook, so Whitestar got started setting up the tents. When Taia and Juren returned from collecting firewood, they all field dressed their own meal and Taia spiced it and put it on the spit to cook.

"Much better," Taia said to Juren. "You may just escape being Gated home in disgrace."

"Thank you," said Juren. "And….Lyesa says I owe you an apology for my behavior, as well as a thank you for putting up with me. So – I'm sorry I was such a problem, and thank you for putting up with me."

Taia was surprised and glanced up at Lyesa. The Companion looked her in the eye and winked.

:I get the feeling you wanted him to learn this the hard way. I guess maybe it worked.: Taia Mindspoke the Companion.

:I had forgotten you could bespeak whomever you chose.: Lyesa replied. :Yes. He didn't believe me that he needed to learn these things. I am sorry that it made your travel more difficult; but he seems to only learn things through experience – or the hard way, as you put it.:

They traveled for another fortnight before Juren learned to cook meat over a fire without either burning it or leaving it raw, but by the end of it he had managed to cook a fairly decent rabbit. His venison still needed work, and Whitestar usually supervised him on that so that the work the birds put into hunting deer didn't go to waste. Extra meat was sold to inns or local farmers on their way through small towns in exchange for bread or fresh fruit. By the end of that second fortnight, they were almost to Tremane's castle. They would have been there already, but Juren's need for frequent breaks in the beginning meant that it took longer to get there. A sennight after they had expected to arrive, they finally rode through the gates of the city.

When Tremane had first come to Hardorn, it had been on the heels of the war against Ancar. That had been the first time Taia had come to Valdemar, on the invitation of Kerowyn to have a joint mercenary operation in defense of Valedmar. That war had wreaked havoc on both countries, but had decimated Hardorn. Ancar had forcibly conscripted any male of fighting age, and most of them had died. It had left cities no more than villages, and small towns entirely empty. Tremane had said that that was why the Empire had sent him to take Hardorn in the first place; that was how the Empire worked. It either worked to weaken a neighboring country or watched as it weakened itself, and then moved in and took over. Usually, any resistance was easily overcome and the people ended up so grateful for the order and security provided by the Empire itself that by the time the takeover was complete, the people didn't even realize they had a new government and new laws. That very likely would have been the case with Hardorn, as well, had the mage storms not come. They essentially trapped Tremane and his army in Hardorn, without reinforcement by the Emperor. He was a good leader, and his troops provided much needed security and business for the Hardornen natives, not to mention husbands for their daughters, and they named him their king. Hardorn had been lucky it had been Tremane, and not another general, that had been sent to Hardorn; another general might not have seen any value in helping the native citizens, and Hardorn would have been lost.

It still might be, if Taia's mission failed. The Empire had been making noise against the border towns for several moons, and Hardorn was having a hard time defending itself. It was a small country, and while it would have recovered from Ancar by now it had not recovered from the war against the mage a decade past. None of the allies had. If they all worked together again, they could maybe withstand the Empire's assault, but the Empire showed no sign of being a threat to anyone but Hardorn; it was difficult to get so many countries to work together when there was a shared obvious threat, impossible without it. The only hope was to keep the Empire at bay, at least until Hardorn could recover a full standing army.

They had arrived inside Tremane's city in the evening, but Taia wanted to present herself at Tremane's castle refreshed, clean, and not travel-weary. So as soon as they passed through the gates at the outskirts of the city, they began to look for an appropriate inn. They found a reputable looking building called The Blue Spear, and Whitestar negotiated two rooms and stalls for their mounts while Taia and Juren went to see to the horses' accommodations. Juren tended to Lyesa and Kiani while Taia tended to Kisten and Maleh. The stablehands at this inn were surprised that the guests wanted to tend to their own horses, and were a bit annoyed that they were picky about their feed; but Taia was used to that, and gave them a few chits. It was true that Shin'a'in were pickier about the care of their mounts than the average rider, but she wasn't about to change that.

They went inside, where Whitestar had successfully negotiated two rooms for the night along with dinner and baths. They sat down at a table back in the corner and were served a delicious, thick beef stew with generous slices of bread and butter. They drank ale and were served fruit pies with cream for dessert. Taia was at first happy when a Bard took up a place in the opposite corner to perform, and then dismayed when she realized the song he had decided to sing was about her. He didn't seem to recognize her, though, so at least that wasn't the reason for the song. It was one thing to lead an army to victory; it was another to hear about that victory in a Bard's rendition, full of glorious battles and heroic actions on her part. Most of those actions were exaggerated at best, and complete falsehoods at worst; and the idea that battles were glorious, and not bloody, painful and hard, was something that she could never accept. She supposed that if the Bardic renditions were more in line with reality, though, she would never have any recruits to train at all. Maybe that would be a good thing; if no country could recruit an army, they couldn't fight the war to begin with.

They finished their meal and retired to their rooms, where tubs of hot water had been provided for their baths. This was an upscale inn; most of the time, there would be one tub that they would have had to refill themselves and largely with cold water in order to bathe. Taia and Whitestar shared theirs; it was a bit crowded, at least until they finished the actual bathing, but afterwards it suited their purpose just fine.

The next morning, they were refreshed and dressed in their best outfits. They retrieved their mounts and rode to Tremane's castle, where they were greeted by his guards. They gave the stablehands strict instructions regarding the mounts, but let the stablehands do their jobs; it was one thing to insist on doing themselves at an inn, but an entirely different thing to do so at a palace and insult a king. They were escorted to Tremane's office, where he was waiting.

"Greetings," he said, rising from his desk. "I trust your travel wasn't too arduous. I will show you to your rooms, and then we will begin discussing exactly how best you can overthrow my former government."

The mission had begun in earnest.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter nine**

It was a good thing they arrived to Tremane's castle when they did; the delay of their arrival meant that the weather was quite a bit colder than it should have been. This appeared to be the start of a particularly cold winter, as well, and Taia was grateful to arrive at a warm and dry castle ahead of the winter storms that came right on their heels. So far, it was just a cold, hard rain; this was hard enough on Taia's arthritic joints, but the oncoming snow would be worse. And it looked like it was going to be a harsher winter than normal. Taia hoped she wouldn't have to go out much; but the horses would still need to be exercised and tended to, so she was glad she had packed their winter gear. It wouldn't make the effects on her joints disappear, but it would help.

"So it appears we need to learn a lot about the Empire," she said to Whitestar. "Nothing said is ever straightforward there; although, as stablehands, we probably won't have to deal with court. Still, we will have to understand its politics."

"From what Tremane tells me, nothing said in Imperial Court is actually what is meant, and the slightest slip of the tongue can result in execution," said Whitestar. "I have to assume that even in the stables, we will need to be careful what we say and do, or not only will our mission be discovered, we may be executed before it even begins."

"Quite right," said Tremane. They were sitting at a table in the dining hall enjoying lunch, and Tremane walked in to join them. "While in the stables it is true you will not be overheard by many court nobles, there are spies everywhere. Particularly with the new Emperor, Melles; he is a former assassin himself, and he has a lot of enemies. This makes him extremely paranoid."

"Interesting," said Taia. "I did not realize I was going to assassinate an assassin. I assume he was good at his craft, since he survived long enough to be made Emperor."

"Yes," said Tremane. "He was the best, actually. He has survived several assassination attempts to his person, and he is likely to see through any charade you come up with. It's a very good thing you have come to me to get background information; it is extremely unlikely you would have success on your own. I have my doubts on whether or not you will be able to succeed even with my help, although I assure you, I will certainly do my best."

"Wonderful," said Taia wryly. "Now I'm even less excited about the prospect of this mission, particularly with three of us."

"That does make it more difficult," said Tremane. "I do wish your Queen had consulted me on this plan to send young Juren with you. I understand her feeling that his exceptional Thoughtsensing Gift would give you more warning if you were discovered, but you're right – his presence makes that discovery more likely to begin with."

"And I still think that our Empathy Gifts would have served the same purpose as his Thoughtsensing," said Whitestar. "Still. There is nothing to be done about it now. All of these concerns have been brought to the attention of the Queen and overruled. While I think it is certainly worthwhile to forward your information to her in hopes that she will finally be convinced, I think it is more important to proceed to make a plan on the expectation that she will not."

"Very true," said Taia. "Assassination missions are very far out of the realm of 'normal' in Valdemar; and while sending the three of us to, say, Karse on such a mission wouldn't be a bad idea, the Empire is a different story, and none of us really understand how different."

"Well," said Tremane, "I believe that with a lot of work, and some practice, I will be able to help you craft identities and behaviors to make your mission a success, even with the three of you. I cannot guarantee it, however; a lot has changed, undoubtedly, since my departure. Melles will have increased his own physical security, as well, from what Charliss had; he is also an Adept-class mage. Mindmagic is not used in the Empire, so I suspect that might turn out to be the key to your success."

"Thank you," said Taia. "While I've yet to take on a mission that does not present risk to my life, I'm not in a hurry to meet the Star Eyed!"

"I agree, I'm not in a hurry to join you," said Whitestar.

"Yes, that does make it more complicated, doesn't it," said Tremane thoughtfully. "The lifebond. If one of you must be sacrificed on a mission, that means both of you are. I can't imagine having that kind of a restriction on what I could choose during a mission."

"It's not really a limitation," said Taia. "We wouldn't choose to live without each other even if that were an option."

"I suppose so," said Tremane. "Although that is an entirely foreign concept to me. Well, let's hope that it doesn't come to having to sacrifice either of you."

"I'm fairly certain that Whitestar and I can learn to impersonate an Imperial stablehand. I'm not saying it will be easy; but the basic job of caring for horses, we don't need to be taught," said Taia. "And we're both of us battle-tested. Juren, however – well, it was hard to get him to learn to set up his own tent. He can care for Lyesa, and he's learning about Kiani; but the basic brushing down a horse won't cut it. He needs to know how and when to muck stables, how to recognize and treat diseases, how to shoe a horse and exercise it. He can't be doing it for the first time in the Imperial stables if we want these identities to stick."

"Very well," said Tremane. "I will arrange for him to work alongside my own stable manager."

"Excellent," said Whitestar. "It will also reinforce to him that he cannot behave like lord of a manor in this role and expect any of us to survive."

"I gather your trip here with him was eventful?" asked Tremane.

"The first fortnight was misery," said Taia. "We had to stuff padding for under his bedroll, take unscheduled breaks in riding. He refused to help in camp setup or cooking but didn't refuse to whine about it. It was only after I put my foot down that he began to behave himself!"

"Imagine, a couple of old folks like us, traveling fine on horseback with a simple tent and pallet, while the youngster complained of a sore back!" laughed Whitestar.

Tremane laughed with them. "Although I would hardly call the two of you old; you are young enough to be my daughters. He is young enough to be my grandson. But I can't imagine that traveling like that would be pleasant for a pair with your experience!"

They all laughed heartily and told stories about Juren as well as other ill-prepared youngsters from their experiences. It was all in good fun; Taia and Whitestar did genuinely like the boy. It was true, though, that no matter how much they liked him, and no matter how willing he had been to adjust his behavior after rapprochement, his success or failure to adapt to his role as a stablehand would determine all of their continued survival. It was difficult for anyone unaccustomed to undercover work to assume a new identity, and extremely dangerous, even with experience; Juren had none. Even Taia had very little. And to do so in the Imperial Palace, where it was extraordinarily difficult to maintain the simplest of spies – Taia had her doubts on their chances, for sure. Their failure to assassinate Melles would undoubtedly lead to war between Valdemar, Hardorn and the Empire; they would almost certainly lose that war. Whether or not they survived the mission itself, it had to be a success or their lives would likely be ended by the resultant war.

Taia and Whitestar spent the next fortnight perfecting their illusions and designing their identities. They kept up their decisions to layer illusions; they first masqueraded at the castle as an elderly couple, until those personas were well established among Tremane's court. They wanted to leave traces of the 'people' their illusions represented, so that no matter how the mission turned out, the Empire would not be able to trace the assassination or its attempt back to their real persons; they would only be able to trace it to some ephemeral elderly man and his wife that never quite materialized. They spent some time riding out into the towns as these characters, both on their own mounts as they were and their mounts illusioned as nags so that it wouldn't be quite clear, if these characters were traced, exactly what town they were from. Juren was cast as Taia's middle-aged, not terribly bright son; they weren't trying to insult the boy, but the best way to explain the existence of a third member of a party when two was hard enough to explain was to make it appear that the boy was to dimwitted to be let to live on his own.

When they had fully established the elderly couple, they layered the new illusions 'on top' of the elderly couple as a somewhat younger couple, with Juren being a slightly younger version of his actual self. They then proceeded to establish these new characters, but not at Tremane's court; these would be the personas that the Empire would most likely be tracking, regardless of the outcome of the mission. Taia did not want to endanger Tremane by leading his old enemy directly to him, whether or not they succeeded. They spent another fortnight establishing these 'younger' characters in nearby towns, villages and farms. They left magical traces of the characters in some inns chosen at random, so that any search for them would be confused at best, and likely impossible. The more traces they left, at improbable distances from each other, the less likely the Empire mages would be able to make any sense of them and they would likely give up. They planned to take a circuitous route to the Empire so that they could leave such traces at inns along the way, but not in any kind of path that made any sense.

There was some concern that the inns in question would be placed in some danger by leaving these traces, but they all agreed that it couldn't be helped. An assassination attempt, whether or not it was successful, would lead to the Empire's attempt to determine the source. If there was nothing at all to trace, they would simply attack the most likely source; that would be Hardorn. If they could trace something, but not accurately, they would more likely give up; Taia and Whitestar made doubly sure that the traces showed no evidence of being from any particular country or group, so that none could be directly blamed. However, since all of the traces would be physically in Hardorn, Hardorn would likely still be blamed, and war would break out anyway. So that had to be remedied.

One evening, they sat in their room and locked the door. Taia used her Farsight, and Whitestar linked to her. Together, they placed their magical tags on inns in Valdemar, Karse, Rethwellan, Jkatha – even Kata'shin'a'in. Every place she could reach with her Gift, they found an inn to leave a tag. It would make it virtually impossible for any mage of whatever power to accurately determine where they were from, and even less likely to be able to determine who to attack in retaliation. Then they buried the tag deep within their illusioned personas, so that they would be found by a mage only after an event that would trigger them to look. In the event that Melles was suspicious enough to look at them on arrival, the tags would suggest nothing more than a few servants who had moved around from one master to another; Taia would be very surprised if a man even as suspicious as Melles was would bother to look for magical tags on three ordinary-appearing servants. Even so, they buried the tags deep enough that they would not be 'seen' without Taia and Whitestar being alerted to the search.

When they had recovered from their mage working, Taia Mindspoke with Kerowyn to update Valdemar about their plan. She repeated her concerns about Juren and included her review of his ineptitude – not based on the boy's intelligence, but his lack of experience – but was rebuffed again. Taia was frustrated beyond measure; she considered refusing to proceed with the mission if Juren weren't recalled home, she considered Gating him home against orders, she considered throwing a temper tantrum and mentally screaming at Selenay until she relented. But in the end, she decided that while Juren's presence certainly complicated things, it was possible that the Queen and Consort were correct that it would be beneficial. Also, there seemed to be a feel of Companion 'meddling', which Kerowyn reported.

:It seems that the reason for having Juren on your trip has more to do with Companion secrecy than anything the Queen or Daren came up with on their own.: she said.

:It figures. Maybe I'll appeal to Lyesa; certainly, she cannot want Juren to go on a mission where he's likely to be found out and killed before he's even in Whites!: Taia said.

:The council has also decided to grant Juren his Whites upon his return.: said Kerowyn.

:It figures that he'd get out of having to do a field circuit afterall.: grumbled Taia. She had told Kerowyn about the struggle to get Juren used to extended travel by horseback. Kerowyn was less impressed by the boy than Taia, but Kero had never been known to be forgiving of weakness; it was too likely to get a person killed. And on a battlefield, one soldier's weakness could get the entire squad killed.

:He's likely to get a position in Haven anyway; all of his instructors agree he is not suited for field work.: said Kerowyn.

:I would think that that Thoughtsensing Gift would make him unsuitable for city life as well.: said Taia.

:It seems that other than having a powerful Gift and being a basically decent person, he is not suited for being a Herald at all.: said Kerowyn.

:Ah, the inscrutability of Companions and their Choosing…..: said Taia.

:Indeed.: replied Kerowyn.

That exhausted Taia's Gift, and they said their goodbyes. Taia had incredible range with her Mindspeech; she was the only person they knew that could communicate with another Gifted person from Shonar to Haven, and in truth that wasn't the edge of her range. She could do so from the Plains or from k'Treva Vale as well, and that was significantly farther. However, at this distance she could only do so with relative ease with another individual with the Mindspeech Gift; in order to bespeak someone without the Gift at this distance, she would have to be in trance, if she could accomplish it at all. She would not be able to communicate, even to someone with the Gift, from the Imperial Palace without being in trance; however, Juren would be able to communicate with Lyesa, and Lyesa could communicate with Rolan back in Haven. Perhaps it would be useful to have the lad along, afterall.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter ten**

Taia and Whitestar were holed up in Shonar for at least another two moons; it was now winter. Hardornen winters were somewhat more formidable than Valdemaran winters; Taia was grateful for the fact that they weren't required to attempt to reach the Eastern Empire in this weather, but she worried that they may have to set out earlier than planned. Skirmishes on the border had gotten more intense, and actual war was expected to break out when the weather cleared. That had to be balanced, however, with perfecting their Eastern Empire personas; if they could not properly impersonate someone from that culture, the mission would be over before it began. There was no sense at all in setting off before they were ready; that would just invite failure, and war would break out anyway, and possibly sooner. So they practiced. And waited. And hoped.

They put various random illusions on themselves and appeared in court as Eastern Empire refugees, presenting invented requests to Tremane. Tremane met with them afterwards and critiqued their performance; use this phrase, not that phrase. This body posture is interpreted in the Empire as hostile; do not turn your back on your 'better' in the Empire. Emphasize this syllable in the word for 'horse', not that one; Taia was having a hard time learning the language. It was also hard to remember to act like a servant; she had been a leader of this, a teacher of that, for most of her life. Whitestar was having an easier time, which was good; they had decided that they would not both be stablehands. Whitestar would be a scullery cook, and Taia would be the stablehand; Juren would be a house servant, as he showed absolutely no ability at all to be anything…..dirtier. As a scullery cook, Whitestar would likely have more contact with people of rank than Taia would in the stables. Taia would only have contact if and when the people came to the stables for a horse, and she would be expected to have somewhat coarser speech; but it still had to be accurate, and her manner still had to be perfect.

Juren, surprisingly, had no difficulty at all. He had an advantage, however; he was allowed to use his Gift to read Tremane's surface thoughts and adjust his behavior accordingly. Tremane accepted his word as a Herald that he would not 'look' any deeper than the surface. Taia decided at that point that instead of placing Juren as a stable servant, it might be better to try and get him a position inside the castle. It would probably be an easier placement than trying to pass him off as a stablehand. It may also be beneficial; he could perhaps give Taia warning that Melles was about to come to the stable, so that she could be ready with his horse – and a knife. She would have to come up with a way to make sure that she, as a new stablehand, was the one chosen to prepare the Emperor's mount. Generally speaking it was not the new hire that had the privilege of attending the ruler of a country; that was usually given to the most senior member of the staff. The new hire got to muck the stables and exercise some of the less important mounts. Taia could certainly do that, but it wasn't her purpose for being there.

They went out periodically to place more magical 'tags' on more inns, trying to make them as randomly placed as possible. They used a variety of different illusions; mostly the characters they would be masquerading as in the Empire, but also occasionally the characters they impersonated in Court. They wanted these 'tags' to be as confusing as possible. They also spent more evenings placing the tags on inns in various countries; one evening when Taia decided it would be her sole location, she made it all the way to Seejay. She couldn't place more than a few tags there, however; it was a long distance to 'travel', and when she had done it her energy was almost exhausted.

They attended Court dinners, both as themselves as well as in their various personas. It was getting a bit confusing; when were they Taia, Whitestar and Juren, and when were they Ruk, Saria, and Lyek? As the winter wore on, they appeared more frequently as their alter egos and less as themselves; one evening, they had an official 'farewell dinner' for their real selves and maintained one illusion or another for the remainder of the season. Lyesa at that point was housed at a nearby guardpost instead of the castle, so that it appeared she had left; she was confined to the stable as much as she could tolerate in order to reduce the number of people who saw her. She presented as a Companion on Search to anyone who noticed, and behaved as if the weather was preventing her from her travels; Hardornens were less familiar with Companions than Valdemarans, for obvious reasons, and therefore the story was believable. In reality, no Companion on Search could be stopped by, well, anything.

The birds were enjoying their time, however. They went out every day and brought back winter prey – foxes and rabbits with their white winter coats, ermines, even deer with thicker coats. Elk and moose were possible in this region, and they brought back a few of those. Wolves of different colors than Valdemar offered. Whitestar enjoyed the option of making furs of different colors than they usually had available; Taia enjoyed using the moose and elk antlers to make tools and decorations. She decided to carve functional, but largely decorative, bows from the moose and elk antlers; one out of each. She would decide when they were finished which one she liked better, and that would be a belated wedding gift to Andrien and Jarik; likely, she would give them both and let them decide which they each liked better.

Whitestar was making white fur gloves, scarves, even a cape out of white foxfur and lined with rabbit. She hadn't determined yet whether, or what, would become gifts and what they would keep; the cape, however, would almost certainly become a gift. For whom, it was even less certain; maybe Andrien, if she could get enough furs to make a cape also for Jarik. If not, maybe Kero, maybe even Selenay. The gloves and scarves – they would each keep a pair, and the rest would be gifts. She started making hats and boots as well, but they didn't really need any hats and boots took more time, so they weren't the primary project.

:Have bear.: said Syen.

:White bear.: added Ryki.

:Good fur, make good cape for Jarik.: said Sera.

Well, that settled it. Jarik would get a bear cape to match Andrien's fox. Apparently, the birds had been paying attention to what Whitestar had been making and went hunting specifically for something appropriate.

:Had planned on getting white wolf, more common. White bear, rare.: explained Syen.

:Thank you.: said Whitestar. :Thank you all, and excellent work!:

:Welcome.: said Ryki and Sera.

Syen just grunted; she thought it was her responsibility to provide whatever the little family needed by way of meat and furs, and was somewhat insulted by being thanked for doing what she saw as her job. Raptors.

"I almost feel guilty using a white bear fur," said Whitestar. "They're rare, I would prefer to use animals that are more common. But on the other hand, I didn't actually ask for it!"

"And they're rare," said Taia. "Not nonexistent. It's not like they took down the last one."

"Also an excellent point," agreed Whitestar.

The birds brought the bear in where Whitestar and Taia dressed it and gave the meat to the kitchen. The birds ate the innards that they enjoyed and disposed of the rest where it wouldn't rot where people could smell it, or the wild animals could eat the rest. Whitestar and Taia cleaned the skin and set about preparing it; when they were finished, they set their illusion for the day and headed out to an inn a few towns away. They had already set a tag on this one, but wanted to solidify their characters there. This was something they were doing completely randomly; they wanted to have their trail be as confusing as possible. So they set a stronger tag on some inns, but completely randomly. Some were in Hardorn, some in Valdemar, and some in inns in other countries. When the Empire mages tried to trace them, a completely even random pattern would be an obvious effort to deceive, and they might take a closer look; if there were some obvious stronger tags, it would delay those mages as they focused on trying to discern the pattern in them. By the time they discovered there was no pattern, Taia hoped they would be long gone, and that the Empire would be so frustrated they would give up. She had her doubts that they would, but either way their attempt would take a lot of time, and every day they were delayed in their counterattack was another day the Valdemaran and Hardornen armies could grow and prepare.

It took two candlemarks at a canter to arrive at the inn of choice that evening; it was a good thing that Tremane insisted on road maintenance in the winter, or it might have taken all day. Taia was glad, though; the ride was short enough that she didn't get too cold, and the horses needed a good run anyway. When they arrived, they made sure the horses were comfortable and walked into the inn. Where they were met with a surprise.

"That's him!" someone yelled, and it took Taia a minute to realize the speaker was pointing in their direction.

At Juren. This did not look promising.

"He's the guy who lied to my Rosie!" the speaker yelled.

Taia looked at Juren questioningly.

:I, uh, may have flirted with a girl.: he said.

:Flirted?: asked Taia with a note of doubt.

:She…..may or may not have been led to believe I was going to marry her.: said Juren sheepishly.

Taia glared at Juren.

:Great. Now, not only are we going to have to defend ourselves in a barfight without actually killing anyone, but these personas are finished. Thanks for that.:

:Sorry. You want me to take left flank or right?: Juren asked.

:Neither. I want you to leave, and Whitestar and I will take care of it. Take the horses, and we'll meet you at the south intersection. Now get.: said Taia.

:But - : started Juren.

:GET.: said Taia, nearly 'loud' enough for the entire bar to hear. Juren winced and ran out the door.

Taia and Whitestar each drew their bootknives – neither ever went anywhere unarmed, although unless someone knew where to look they would never see the weapon – but neither were in possession of swords. Carrying a sword didn't exactly fit their personas of rough and tumble middle-aged men. They would be fighting in a different style than they were used to, but this was why they trained in more than one weapon. Barfights were dirty; not that any kind of fighting outside the practice ring was clean, but in a bar, anything could and would be used as a weapon. The chairs, the beer mugs, the boiling hot soup….anything. Taia and Whitestar had a lot of training and a lot of experience, but none of that was a guarantee; and they would be trying not to cause permanent injury, let alone death. The rest of the patrons wouldn't be so careful.

The man who had accused Juren yelled and rushed them. Taia dispatched him easily, disarming him of his knife and knocking him on the head with the pommel of her own. He would have a headache when he woke, but nothing more. Whitestar dispatched his friend similarly, but the ease of the battle ended there. The entire bar erupted in violence; apparently, Rosie was something of a favorite in this inn, and every person in the bar personally wanted to avenge her broken heart. Taia was seriously considering avenging that broken heart herself when she caught up with Juren, but before she could do that, she had to survive this fight. At the moment, that ending was not a guarantee. She thought how absurd it would be for her to have survived everything she survived, only to die in a barfight because some incompetent Herald trainee couldn't stop himself from making promises he knew he wouldn't keep….

By the time it was over, both Taia and Whitestar were covered in ale and beef soup. Whitestar had a rather nasty gash on her left cheek as well as a few cuts on her arms; Taia had a stab wound in the left side of her stomach and similar gashes on her arms. Both were limping from slash wounds to their thighs and Whitestar was pretty sure she had a concussion from someone hitting her over the head with a soup bowl. Which was why she was covered in soup. Taia was lucky enough to have had it thrown at her, so she had some minor burns on her face as well. As for the bar patrons, many of them were unconscious, with similar gashes, some with broken bones. None of them had injuries that they would not survive, although two or three might end up with a limp depending on their access to a Healer. Whitestar did what she could for those without giving away their identities, but they had to leave quickly before the Guard arrived. They switched their illusions, just in case, as they left the inn so that if the Guard saw them, they could not be identified as anything other than ordinary customers.

They met Juren at the intersection as Taia had instructed; they mounted their horses and took off at a canter. The horses would not be able to keep up this pace for the entire way, since they had not had any time to recover from their arrival, but they needed to get past the city limits quickly. When they slowed, Juren started to apologize and explain; Taia gave him a look that would have caused anyone else to drop dead where he stood in abject sorrow for his actions. But Juren didn't have that much intelligence, apparently, because he continued to stammer his apologies.

"Shut up!" said Taia. "Shut up! You do not want to discuss this with me until we arrive at the castle, believe me on that!"

When they did arrive, Taia still didn't let him speak until the horses were properly cared for, she and Whitestar had a chance to Heal their wounds, their clothing was soaking and they had had a bath. Only then did Taia and Whitestar approach Juren, and she had only just begun to calm down. First, she slapped him across the face. Hard. Then Whitestar slapped him across the other side of his face. Hard.

"Now," began Taia. "Now I will explain to you exactly why you are an idiot. First, we want our characters to be remembered. But vaguely. You do not get yourself remembered vaguely by making promises to some poor girl in your efforts to get in her breeches. If it's breeches you need to get into, there is a whorehouse down the road that would be more than happy to take your chit."

"Second," continued Whitestar, "How in all the hells did you just forget to mention those promises you made before we went into that inn and proceeded to have to fight for our lives in YOUR defense?! We should have been the ones to walk out, let you settle your own disputes! Not only have you made it impossible for us to use those personas ever again, now we have to go through and remove any trace of their existence in any of the inns we've used them in before. Which is exhausting and difficult work. Which you cannot do for yourself, since you are not a mage."

"Third," said Taia, "We had to fight a bunch of drunk men in a barfight. What if we had killed any of them? Because you made promises you knew you wouldn't keep? Whose head would their deaths be on? What if we had been killed? It isn't impossible, you know. We're good, but we're as mortal as anyone else. One lucky slip of the blade and both of us go down. And then where would Hardorn be? Or Valdemar? At the mercy of the Empire."

"So," said Whitestar, "The next time you go thinking with what's in your pants and not what's in your head, kindly stay home in your room, or visit that whorehouse because none of us need to be killed for your stupidity, least of all those poor men in the bar. By the way, Rosie is the bar owner's daughter. You broke her heart. So good for you, break a perfectly good girl's heart and for no reason at all. I hope you're proud of yourself."

"Now we have to create entirely new personas to replace the ones we can't use anymore, which will take away from the time we could have been spending doing more productive things. Good job, Juren," finished Taia. "I have to go get to work removing all those tags. Good night."

Juren had the decency to look sheepish. He didn't even try to apologize, just squeaked out "Goodnight" in return to Taia and Whitestar's backs as they left the room and slammed the door. Despite what she'd said, Taia did not remove all of the tags that night; she didn't have the energy to do so. She did remove all the tags for those personas in Hardorn, though; the ones in other countries would not be so easily found, so they would wait until morning.

All she knew was Juren better clean up his act, and his presence on this mission had better be damned useful, because so far all he had been for her was extra work and a headache.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter eleven**

Taia woke early the next morning and she and Whitestar spent a few more candlemarks making sure all the tags for their now useless personas were eliminated. They would both have reaction headaches for the rest of the day, and Taia rather hoped that her duties would keep her away from Juren for whole of it; she was still very angry with him and might actually do the boy harm if she saw him while feeling the way she did. Still, she understood the boy's youth; it was easy to get carried away flirting with a pretty girl; particularly when you get to do so while playing a role and the failure to woo her could be blamed on that and not your real self. She planned to have a calm discussion of forgiveness with the boy. But not until her headache faded.

Whitestar, for once, was less forgiving. She was inclined to Gate him back to Haven as soon as their energies had recovered enough to do so; she had worked hard on those illusions, and now all that work had been wasted. They had to establish new personas in their place, place tags for them, and make sure they would be traceable, but poorly – and they now had less time to finish the work. But there was no help for it; the damage had been done. She supposed though, that she ought to let the boy off the hook; her anger was hardly going to help make the mission a success.

Tremane, for his part, found the situation rather amusing. It was unfortunate, of course, and irritating to have to undo and then redo work that had been done, and done with great difficulty; but he remembered being a young boy, faced with the prospect of having to interact with locals, and one of them a pretty girl. He could understand why Juren would have taken advantage of such an opportunity, and had a hard time being terribly angry with him. He was not, however, the one who would have to redo the work, or the one whose life was directly endangered by the mission failure; so it was perhaps easier for him to forgive.

There was a little more than a moon left before spring, and Taia and Whitestar had a lot of work left to do. In addition to recreating characters to replace the lost ones, they had to perfect their use of the language and customs. They had to learn as much as they possibly could of what Tremane knew of the operation of the Emperor's day-to-day life, although he acknowledged that most likely all of it had changed since he had left; not only was Melles an entirely different person from Charliss, he was also considerably younger. Charliss, when Tremane had left, had been in the last few years of his mage-lengthened life; Melles was at the beginning of his own. And as suspicious and canny as Charliss had been, Melles was more so. Also, Melles didn't have a lot of friends; Charliss had had plenty of loyal followers. Melles would be very unlikely to follow the same routine more than once; he would make an extremely difficult target for an assassin. Taia would not only require the necessary advantage of surprise, but she would need to accomplish her goal without any advanced warning whatsoever.

Oh, goody. She thought. She hadn't acted as an assassin in probably twenty years. She wasn't as young as she used to be, either; her flexibility wasn't as good as it had been, and while she did her best to keep her reflexes sharp, she knew they weren't anywhere near what they had once been either. So she set for herself some exercises to attempt to regain some of that flexibility, and Tremane allowed her to practice 'assassinating' him. She was 'successful' more often than she wasn't, and he made the effort to make it a challenge for her; but she was by no means confident in her ability to be successful against someone as difficult to catch unaware as Melles. Nonetheless, she doubted anyone in Valdemar could do so with greater likelihood of success than herself; Kerowyn was older than she was, and while it was often difficult to remember that fact since Kero still moved easily and trained just as many younglings as Taia, Taia knew her friend was feeling her age. Skif was not much younger, with less experience, and with the same big white horse. So she would have to do, and she would have to be successful – or die trying. She rather hoped it was not the latter, but thought it somewhat likely nonetheless.

Whitestar also practiced 'assassinating' Tremane; she was nearly as skilled as Taia, and since she would be actually in the palace rather than its stables, it was likely she would have more contact with Melles. She was less likely to be able to accomplish the task without significant witnesses, however, and that was something they wanted to avoid. They knew that in the event of even a failed attempt, their characters would be traced, or at least the Empire would attempt to trace them; but the fewer witnesses there were to the act itself, at least that trace would be delayed, allowing for their possible escape. They might even manage to not be identified as the perpetrators at all. Witnesses had a tendency to also be bodyguards, though, which would decrease that escape possibility. Neither had a wish to die, and less did they wish to be imprisoned; Tremane was very clear that Empire executions involved a great deal of torture prior to the actual execution, particularly for attempted assassinations. Taia had had enough torture for several lifetimes, and Whitestar had no desire to acquire any.

Juren was not to even make an attempt on Melles' life. He had no experience at all, and had not even had a chance to complete his weapons training. Taia and Whitestar had been working with him on both that and his Gift training all winter, but as an untried Herald Trainee who didn't even have his Whites, it would almost guarantee their defeat if he even so much as made the attempt. He did, however, spend a good deal of time with the servants, learning how to act like a houseservant instead of lord of the manor; he was no good as a stablehand, but knew his way around a noble's house well enough to perhaps pass as a servant. He spent time learning what to watch for to know whether or not anyone was suspicious of him, or of Taia or Whitestar, so that he would be alerted to drop his shields just a little to find out what they were thinking. He had really settled down after the Rosie incident, and Taia was actually starting to have hope that he wouldn't be a total liability.

"Well," Taia said to Whitestar one evening, "I've killed Tremane nine times out of ten attempts in the past three days, how about you?"

"Eight," said Whitestar. "Eight times. Although the eighth one was a lucky shot, really, if I have to be honest."

"How was it a lucky shot?" asked Taia.

"Well," said Whitestar. "I was on Tremane's left side behind him, but I shouldn't have been. I expected him to turn left, because he was headed to his desk, and he would have seen me. But at the last moment he walked over to the fireplace on the right to add a log, and that's when I struck. But if he had moved in the way I expected him to, he would have seen me and I would have been caught."

"What were you doing on the left side?" asked Taia. It was just practice for now, but they only had about another sennight before they would leave for the empire – and a little over a moon later, it would be for real. They had to have this right.

"I actually meant to be on the right, but the step before that he had turned that direction so I moved. I guess he was looking at the fireplace, I'll have to be more observant," said Whitestar.

"Well I wouldn't call that lucky at all," said Taia. "I'd say you saw him look right, subconsciously you knew he would move right, so you stepped left. I'd say that was a success, not a lucky shot."

"Maybe you're right," said Whitestar. "Eight, then. Eight times out of ten."

"Good," said Taia. "I wish we could be successful ten out of ten attempts, but I'm not sure that's a reasonable expectation."

"I don't know," said Whitestar. "Tremane is a person we know, in a castle we've become familiar with, and a limited imagination for how much he can vary his routine – he's never been a particularly suspicious man. Melles, on the other hand – very suspicious, in a palace we're unfamiliar with, and likely to have practiced changing his routine for the last twenty years. Also, Melles is younger and experienced with assassination attempts. If we can't succeed one hundred percent of the time with Tremane, how do we possibly have any chance against Melles?"

"Excellent points, all of them," said Taia. "I was trying to be positive. I don't actually know how in all nine hells we're supposed to even attempt this with any hope of success, but I don't really see how we can prepare any more than we already have."

"True," said Whitestar. "I guess we're just going to have to be careful and lucky."

"Good thing we're so good at both," said Taia. "I don't know how we would have survived half of those merc battles without luck."

"But I don't remember either of us ever being particularly careful," said Whitestar.

"Well, that's true enough, but we lived, right? Through more than one battle that we probably shouldn't have," said Taia.

"Remember that guy riding the bull?" asked Whitestar.

"I remember you being mad at me for breaking my arm again!" said Taia.

"And after all the work I'd put in to Healing them all!" laughed Whitestar.

"I don't know what I was thinking!" said Taia.

"You were thinking you had to save the rest of the troupe, and you were also twenty years younger! We did a lot of things back then we could never dream of doing now, and not only because our joints won't take it anymore – mine or yours!" said Whitestar.

"Well, I guess it's a good thing we're going as assassins then, and not leading an army into battle," said Taia. "I don't have any more bull-rider moves in me."

"And you'd be hard pressed to not try it anyway," said Whitestar. "Oh, don't give me that look, you know you would, neither one of us can remember we're not in our twenties anymore."

"That is true, so it's a good thing the mission remembers for us," said Taia.

They continued their attempts to 'assassinate' Tremane, and by the end of that sennight they were successful every time. Juren was fairly confident in his ability to infiltrate the servants, as well; Taia still had her doubts, but she hoped she was just being hypercritical. She kept trying to reconcile this boy, who seemed so inept at everything he tried, with the student who had put every last scrap of effort into controlling his Gift and who had been so happy and grateful to have mastered it. This boy was still happy and grateful to have mastered his Gift, and he was absolutely a good person; but he was so inexperienced. And so unwilling to exert himself in anything BUT his Gift, really. She hoped the Companions had been correct, and that his presence on this mission would, in fact, somehow prove crucial; but she couldn't help but feel it would instead be detrimental.

Tremane spent the last few days before their departure drilling them on language, customs, making sure to never call them anything but their assumed names – Ruk, Saria, Lyek – and they wore their illusions every second of every day and even when they slept. Taia, Whitestar, and Juren ceased to exist, for all practical purposes; they became their personas. Ruk – Taia – spent time in the stables to get used to working within the function of a royal stable; the work of mucking stalls, grooming and exercising horses, saddling horses for their riders – that was something she didn't need to practice, but the hierarchy of a royal stable was something she needed to pay attention to, and how to get herself into a position where she might be legitimately saddling Melles' horse. Saria – Whitestar – spent time in the castle kitchen, getting used to how the cooks functioned together, getting used to cooking in an actual kitchen instead of over a fire; it wouldn't be the first time, they'd been spending time in these roles in Shonar since they decided on their characters, but they focused on them with more intensity in the last fortnight. Lyek – Juren – had been working with the houseservants since their arrival, since he was so unused to servanthood at all; his routine did not change, but he did get used to answering only to 'Lyek'.

They would wear these illusions, and use these names even with each other, for the entire journey from Shonar to the Empire's capital city. It was certainly, Taia thought, the most difficult thing to get used to, answering to yet another name; she had been Taia for most of her life. She answered to Rainfire in the Vales; it was her Tale'edras name, given to her at her adoption into k'Treva by Whitestar. Similarly, Whitestar answered to Ale'shaya on the Plains, or when Taia used that name for her; it was her Shin'a'in name, which Taia had given to her when she had been adopted into Pretera'sedrin. But to answer to yet another name, completely unfamiliar, and to be a man besides? That was not something she could easily get used to. She had to learn to walk differently, talk differently, behave differently both towards other men as well as other women. She had certainly been exposed to misogynistic attitudes before, being the commander of a mercenary troupe; it wasn't exactly common for a woman to lead a bunch of men into battle. But in the Empire, gender roles were rigid. She couldn't just demand to be treated as an equal; she couldn't even beat it into anyone to do so. So she had to learn to be vaguely condescending to women, while being loud and boastful around men. She hoped the Star Eyed would forgive her.

Whitestar did not have that problem, since unlike their original plan of both being stablehands, she was impersonating a scullery cook. She could cook with the best of them – but over an open fire. She had never used an oven. She was finding that the hardest thing to get used to; food cooked in an oven was exposed to heat differently and more evenly than food cooked over a flame. Cooked over a flame, the food had to be rotated evenly to cook through, and that took time and attention; in an oven, it didn't take as long since the heat couldn't escape. And so for Whitestar, it was difficult to learn to cook food without burning it. Bread was her biggest challenge; meat dishes she had more experience with in general, but bread was an unexpected difficulty. And pastries – well, she just hoped they wouldn't ask her to make many of those.

Juren – well, Juren had trouble with all of it, so it was a good thing he had a head start on learning to be a servant. It was also a good thing he didn't have to spend time learning assassination techniques, because he would likely not have been able to learn both. But even Taia had to admit that he was going to serve quite well as a servant; he did understand the language of nobility, and while he had to remember to not in fact behave as a noble, understanding the language and what was expected of a servant helped him to be a very good one. Between remembering to behave as a servant and remembering to respond to the name 'Lyek', Juren had what he could handle; but he, and what was more Lyesa, insisted he was up to the task.

And finally, and all too soon, it was spring. There would still be a few snowfalls, and certainly it was not warm; but it was spring. It would take just over a moon to arrive at the palace of the Empire, and they would add another sennight or so in order to make it as circuitous a route as possible so that they could not be easily traced. But they could not wait any longer; Taia would have liked to wait until the weather would be kinder to her joints, but she knew that the skirmishes with the Hardornen border would begin as soon as the weather permitted and that would be before they could arrive without a Gate. Obviously they could not Gate; servants do not Gate. Taia thought about Gating to the border, but was afraid that the magical signature would be noticed and doom the mission before it really began, so ride it would be.

They left in a light spring rain, before the break of dawn. It was still cold, so while they left a good deal of their winter gear with Tremane along with all the gifts Taia had made out of antlers and bone and Whitestar had made out of furs, they kept enough to keep them warm for the journey. The rest would be left at the guardpost on the border; Taia just hoped the weather warmed up enough that she would be able to tolerate riding with mostly summer gear. She thought maybe she'd try and make a lightweight cloak along the way so she would at least have something, in case it didn't.

Tremane rode with them to the city gate and said goodbye.

"It doesn't seem right to wish you luck on the destruction of my old country, but I can't say I hope you fail, either; if you do not succeed, I lose my new land, which I have come to love more than the old. Still. I cannot wish you unconditional success, but neither do I hope for your failure. I hope that will suffice; I have helped you all that I can, I have held nothing back. Take down Melles; he is as evil a man as man can get. But please remember that the citizens of the Empire are just that – citizens. They no more chose the land of their birth than you or I; and mostly they are good people just like any other citizen in any other country, trying to raise their children. I hope you can see some good in them even as you succeed in your mission," he said.

"I have fought too many battles against people from too many lands to not realize that they are made of the same flesh and bone that knits my own together," said Taia. "We are all just doing the best we can in the world we live in. Perhaps someday we will find a way to eliminate the need for my services; but today is not that day. Farewell, friend, and thank you."

And that is how they found themselves now, riding in the rain, the sun rising on their faces, towards the goal of their mission.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter twelve**

Juren performed his duties much better on this part of the journey than he had on the way to Shonar. He did not have to be shown or reminded to do his share of the work, although he did occasionally have to be reminded which job it was his turn to do. But he took the initiative to ask, instead of waiting to be told, and he didn't complain about it, either. His cooking did not improve, however, despite his sincere efforts; so Whitestar and Taia took that over entirely, and he took over the gathering of firewood entirely in exchange. It was colder than usual for this time of year, which Taia did not appreciate; it also meant that instead of being able to leave their heaviest clothing in Shonar, they had to carry it with them. They still had the availability of Kiani as a packhorse, but that would not be the case after they passed the last guardpost on the Hardornen border; Taia hoped the weather warmed up before then, or she would have to make other plans. Shin'a'in horses were sturdy, strong animals, and they weren't riding at a stressful pace; but they also couldn't pack an unlimited amount of weight on them, either.

They were taking a very circuitous route towards that guardpost; if they had traveled in a straight line, it would have taken not longer than a fortnight to arrive, but since they wanted to confuse their trail as much as possible it would take a full moon. They used the time to get fully used to their new names, and made sure to only use those names, even just with each other. One slip while in the Empire and it was all over; they had to be absolutely solid.

"Ruk," asked Saria, "How much farther is it to the inn we're using tonight?"

"About another candlemark, why?" said Ruk.

"Because Maleh seems to be limping," said Saria.

"Sheka," Ruk swore, and pulled to a stop. All three dismounted while Ruk examined Maleh, who was in fact limping on her left foreleg.

"She's caught a stone in her shoe," said Ruk. "I removed it, but she's got some swelling. She shouldn't be ridden for the next day or two. We will have to put you on Kiani and reload all of our things between the other mounts; Lyek, how much more is Lyesa able to carry? It's only a little more than a candlemark."

"She says to put all of the packs except the tent on, she can manage for that long," said Lyek.

"Good," said Ruk. "Kisten is a big horse, he can take care of the tent. Kiani is a little small but she's sturdy, she should be alright with just a little weight taken off and split between Kisten and Lyesa. Saria, you will have to do some Healing work on Maleh, though, if we're going to make it to the guardpost; Kisten and Kiani can't carry this much weight plus us for an entire day."

"Certainly," said Saria. "But won't that mean we're going to have to stay at this inn for more than one night?"

"Yes," said Ruk. "Fortunately, it's not a bad one."

"Will we have to share a room again?" asked Lyek.

"Perhaps," said Ruk. "I'm not sure. I know they have more than one room, but I don't know how many other guests they're hosting."

They had had to share a room once already. It was not a pleasant experience for any of them. Ruk and Saria were used to privacy in their bedchambers, and certainly not used to sharing them with a man. Mercenaries weren't exactly modest, but even while they had changed clothing in front of their comrades without a second thought they had retreated to their own private tent at the end of every day. And they weren't comfortable being affectionate on any level with an audience.

By the time they arrived at the inn, Maleh was in some distress. They unpacked the horses quickly; Ruk and Lyek tended to the other three mounts while Saria focused on Maleh. After about a candlemark, Maleh was more comfortable; she still shouldn't be ridden for the next day, but she wasn't in pain anymore. They made sure their stalls were warm and clean and that they had plenty of good quality feed and then went to see about their rooms.

"'ello, folks, what kin we be doin' fer ye tonight?" the barman said.

"We be lookin' fer a coupla rooms to rent, two nights," said Ruk in the same dialect.

"Ah," said the barman, "now that be right unfortunate. We only 'ave the one room left."

"We'll take it then," said Ruk and grimaced inwardly. "Any space on the floor, I wonder? Or in the stables bechance?"

"Aye, either," said the barman. "I expect yer young 'erald there might be likin' to stay with 'is 'orse, aye?"

"Aye," said Lyek. He knew he would be the odd man out to sleep on the floor anyway, and would prefer the stables with Lyesa to that. She would at least keep him warm and not kick him in her sleep; he couldn't count on the other people renting floor space for that, and who knows how close to the fire his spot would be. At least this way, it was just him and Lyesa; not a room full of questionable characters with even more questionable hygiene.

"Aye, then, one room and th' stable, no charge fer stayin' there past what we charge fer the 'orse," said the barman.

"Quite fair," said Ruk. Most inns would charge for a person sleeping in the stable, despite the fact that it didn't take them any more space than the horse itself.

They sat down and ordered dinner. The stew was made with deer meat, rather than pork or beef; it was thick and full of vegetables and rich broth. They had good crusty bread with real butter, not just animal fat smeared on hot. They ate two bowls and two slices apiece, then were served fruit pies with cream for dessert. The food was quite impressive; it was obvious why the place was popular.

"With food like this, we might not mind staying here another night," said Ruk.

"Speak for yourself, I'm sleeping in the stables!" joked Lyek, but in good spirits; he thought he might like it better, actually, than being surrounded by the inn's drunken patrons.

"Hey, once you've fought all my battles and earned these old joints, you can have the bed and kick some youngster out into the stables!" answered Ruk, in the same joking tone.

"I'm just enjoying not having to cook for a day or two!" said Saria.

:We teach Jyus to fly.: said Syen.

:I thought he was already flying.: asked Saria.

:Yes, he fly short, low flights. We teach him fly high. Longer distance. Out of arrow range.: said Syen.

:Oh, yes. Good idea.: said Saria.

"Syen says they're going to spend the day teaching Jyus to fly high, and longer distances, so he can stay out of arrow range and not have to ride the horse," she reported.

"Good," said Ruk. "Sera and Ryki just told me the same thing, but they're also hoping to get some good hunting in. Maybe when we get going again, we'll get something other than rabbit for dinner!"

The birds did their best to bring in enough meat every day for the little family – and Lyek – to eat, but when they spent the entire day flying from one place to the other, it was difficult for them to have the time to bring in anything other than small game. Large game was often harder to find, surprisingly, and took more effort to bring down; but if each of them brought in a rabbit or two, that was plenty for everyone. Rabbits were plentiful, and easy to find, so they ate a lot of rabbit when they traveled.

They spent the rest of the evening relaxing, listening to the minstrel – who thankfully was not singing about any of their life experiences – and drinking ale until they were as drunk as anyone else in the inn. They were enjoying the opportunity to relax just a little; yes, they were on a mission and undercover, and they couldn't lose their heads but they could relax a bit. The illusions were solid; they had been operating under these characters long enough that they were comfortable with their new faces. The tag had already been set on their arrival, so all their work was done; they took the night off. Ruk and Saria went up to their room, where they decided to not be Ruk and Saria but Taia and Whitestar while the door was locked; Lyek, however, was stuck in his character as he headed out to the stables to bunk with Lyesa. He was quite comfortable; unlike a horse, Lyesa wouldn't mess up the straw in her stall. She would provide quite enough heat to keep them both warm, and he spread out his stuffed pallet on the straw. It would be plenty soft; at least as soft as the bed upstairs would likely have been. He pulled his heavy cloak over himself and was fast asleep in minutes.

The next morning, they all woke up late and well rested. Taia and Whitestar became Ruk and Saria again and went downstairs for breakfast. Lyek was already there, looking a little bleary-eyed but with his kava and fruit pocket. Ruk and Saria sat down to join him and they enjoyed a leisurely breakfast before heading out to the stables to look after Maleh. Ruk examined her foot to make sure the shoe was sound again and then Saria began to Heal the damaged tissue; it had made a great deal of progress overnight, and Ruk thought that if they set out a bit late and took it easy they would be able to leave the next morning.

"We'll only be one day behind where we wanted to be," said Ruk.

"We can probably make that up, somewhere," said Saria.

"Just what I was thinking," said Ruk. "but we won't make it up tomorrow, tomorrow we have to take it easy. So – enjoy the day of leisure, Lyek. No responsibilities today, do whatever you like – just don't propose to any barmaids!"

"Ha!" said Lyek. "I think I've had my fill of your wrath!"

Lyek took off to the town to see what he could find of interest and after making sure the horses were comfortable and warm, so did Ruk and Saria. They headed first to a tannery, where they sold some of the skins they wouldn't have time to work. They kept the rabbit skins; there were an enormous quantity of them, sure, but they were small and could be used for so many things, from linings to hats, gloves, tunics and if they really wanted to stitch them together, a cape. Ruk also used them for saddle blankets. But the deerhide they didn't need, and didn't have time to work while they traveled; so they sold those. They used the chit to buy dried fruit and nuts, bread they could pack and take with them, and replacements for the spices and herbs they had used along the way. They went and had lunch at a different inn, just for comparison, and the food was nearly as good. They wandered around aimlessly; Ruk spent some time using Farsight to see if she could find out what was going on back at Haven, but it took a lot of energy and she realized she couldn't 'hear' what anyone was saying, anyway. They took a nap in their room and Healed Maleh a bit more and soon it was time for dinner again.

"It's lovely to have a day with no responsibilities," said Lyek, "but hard to find something to do!"

"That is true," said Ruk. "Particularly in a small town you don't know and when there's no festival going on."

"What did you do all day, Lyek?" asked Saria.

"I took a nap," he said. "I wandered around, I bought a few trinkets and talked to a few people. They're still very happy with Tremane, but there are a few people who think he's the one secretly aiding the Empire in their attacks."

"I suppose it's to be expected," said Ruk. "Nevermind that since they did that earth binding ceremony, if he did try to betray Hardorn the Gift would cause him so much pain he'd likely die. It just makes it all the more critical that we succeed, and quickly."

"Yes," agreed Saria. "But we still have to be careful. No acting in haste. I'm going to be honest here, I was not half as nervous about fighting an actual battle as I am about this mission. At least a battle, I understand; swing the sword at the guy coming at you before he swings his at you. Even at its most dangerous, it's really quite simple when you get down to it. This – this, there are so many things that could go wrong just because we misunderstand some phrase. It's terrifying."

"It is," said Ruk. "But I think we're as prepared as we can be and we don't have any choice but to go and do the best we can. We've got a lot of training and a lot of power and Star Eyed willing, a lot of luck. It's going to be a very difficult mission, but not impossible. If I can get to Melles, I'm fairly certain of my skills; I'm not invincible, but I am damned good. You can Heal me of almost anything, Saria, and Lyek – your Thoughtsensing may just be the crucial bit we need to be successful."

:It will work.: said Sera. :You will win. We always win.:

:Yes.: agreed Ryki. :We taught Jyus to fly high. Jyus fly high, out of range. We did our part. Easy. Your part. Do.:

Well, it's not like Ruk could really say no to that. The certainty of raptors was a formidable thing to argue with; she wasn't about to try. She would just have to be successful, that was all there was to it.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter thirteen**

The next morning, the odd three-member team slept late. They were enjoying their last few hours of respite; they packed up their belongings and headed down for a delicious breakfast of cheesy egg and sausage pies with kava. They bought travel-ready food from this inn and made sure to compliment the innkeeper on his fine establishment; they wanted to recommend it to Tremane, and even Valdemaran travelers, they were so pleased with the service and quality. They loaded up the horses after Saria did some final Healing work on Maleh, and judging her sound to ride they took the road toward their next destination.

They had another sennight before they reached the guardpost on the Hardornen border; they were not hurrying, since they had to take the time to put tags on a few more inns and confuse their trail as much as possible, but they didn't need any further delays, either. They were starting to get word that the skirmishes on the border had resumed, and while they were still just feints at a real attack, everyone expected all-out war by Midsummer. Midsummer was four moons away; they had a little more than a moon of travel before they arrived at the Empire palace, which left them maybe one or two moons before war broke out. If that timetable guess was accurate, anyway; no one knew for certain, of course. It was not as if someone could just walk up to the Emperor and ask when, or even if, he intended to actually declare war.

They camped for the night after they left the inn. Ruk and Saria used their warming spell on the tents that they had used as mercenaries; it was still cold enough, especially at night, that they needed more warmth to make sleeping comfortable. They cooked dinner for themselves again and while Whitestar made a delicious meal out of the pheasant and wild pig the birds had caught, they all missed the stew from the inn. They decided that should they be successful in this venture, they would make it a point to return to that inn and stay for several days. They all hoped that they would be able to do just that.

The next morning, they encountered their first band of bandits. Ruk was expecting to run into bandits, the closer they got to the skirmish areas; people who had lost everything in a skirmish often turned to banditry for lack of any other way to support themselves, but more likely people who already operated as criminals found the atmosphere of fearful people irresistible. People rarely traveled in these zones, because of the danger; but those without any choice were often carrying valuable cargo, and if they weren't obviously traveling with armed guard they were usually not very bright and gave it up easily.

This party, however, was not as unarmed as it appeared.

The first band of bandits consisted of a ragged band of about ten individuals, and if they hadn't been armed and trying to kill Ruk and Saria, they would have been pitiable and not targets for violence. But they were, in fact, armed; mostly with bows, though, not swords. Their leader had a cheap and rusty sword, but the rest didn't have anything but bows and knives. The first sign of the attack, in fact, was an arrow that narrowly missed Ruk's face and caught Saria in the shoulder; Saria yelped as Ruk Fetched out the arrow. Saria Healed her own arm enough to stop the bleeding as they both looked towards the direction of the attack just in time to see a full volley of arrows coming their way; Ruk had her swords drawn, and sliced most of them right out of the air. Saria hit the rest of them and the 'battle' was on.

By the time the bandits had the next volley ready, Sera, Ryki and Syen dove out of the sky to snatch some of them and Ruk diverted the rest, but caught one in the thigh. She sheathed the swords and broke off the arrow shaft; she would deal with the head later. For now, it appeared that the battle would be fought at a distance and pulled her bow; unfortunately, she only had the small hunting bow and whittled arrows that were effective against rabbits and fowl, but not people. She fired off a few shots that would do little more than distract the bandits; they had packed for a close hand-to-hand battle, not a distance fight with some bandits. No matter. She and Saria pulled their throwing knives and threw them; between them, they disabled half of the troupe. Syen took out the leader by breaking his arm, making his rusty sword irrelevant; Ryki and Sera left deep enough gashes in the backs of a couple more that they were rendered harmless. Lyek, for his part, did not have a surfeit of throwing knives but he used what he had to disable the last two.

"Good job, Lyek," said Ruk. "Now let's tie them up and we'll haul them along with us to the next town to be tried."

"How are we going to haul them all when we're on horseback and they're not?" asked Saria. "We're going to lose more time, and we're likely to get hit by bandits on a fairly daily basis from here out. This is ridiculous."

"I haven't quite figured that out yet," said Ruk. "You Heal them of the most threatening wounds, Lyek and I will work on something."

"What's your idea?" said Lyek.

"We need a wagon," said Ruk.

"But we're in the middle of nowhere, where are we going to get a wagon?" Lyek asked.

"Excellent question," said Ruk wryly. "I'm going to make one."

"What?" said Lyek. "Make a wagon?! That will take days!"

"Quiet, youngling, and watch me work!" joked Ruk.

She proceeded to use her Mage Gift in a way she never had before. She had used it mostly in battle, and here she applied that experience to the trees; she used some well-placed fireballs to 'chop' a tree down. She then used lightning bolts to split the tree into boards, after cutting off enough roughly round pieces from the trunk to make wheels. This wagon did not need a roof, but it did need walls; short ones, anyway. So she split enough boards to serve as walls as well. This was precise work, and required a great deal of focus; and in a different way than she had ever used it before. She would need some willowbark tea this evening for sure. She wasn't quite sure how to attach the boards to each other, either, or how to create a harness for the horses to pull. She took a break for a second.

"Lyesa," she asked. "I know it's rather humiliating, but I'm hoping you'll agree anyway. In order to pull this wagon, it would be easiest if we had four horses, instead of three, since we'll be riding you as well. The equipment can be loaded into the wagon, but would you consider being harnessed to pull with the three horses?"

Lyesa flattened her ears, but considered the possibility.

:How far will we have to pull it?: she asked.

"The next village is a few candlemarks away, by wagon," Ruk replied. "We hadn't planned on stopping there, but we will have to do so if only to drop off these bandits."

:And what will we do the next time we encounter bandits?: Lyesa asked. It was an excellent question.

"I, um…..hadn't thought about that, yet," admitted Ruk. "I'm thinking, now that I've gone to the trouble of making this stupid thing, that it would have been easier to Fetch them to the nearest sheriff, but I don't have the energy for that now. Next time, though, that's what I'll do."

:Alright.: said Lyesa. :I will consent. But only this once.:

"Thank you," said Ruk sincerely.

While talking to Lyesa, she came up with an idea for 'nails'. She used the same lightning bolt energy she had used to split the wood into boards to make nails out of the rusty sword and some of the bandits' own arrow points. The wagon was ugly, but finished. She took the one deerhide they had kept and cut it into strips to use as the harness and proceeded to harness the three horses – and Lyesa – together and hooked them to the wagon. She also used some of the hide to tie the bandits hands and feet together and connected them all to a lead rope that she held onto from Kisten's back.

"Well, this certainly was creative," said Saria.

"But I have had better ideas in my life," said Ruk. The wagon worked, but it was certainly not as well built as one made by an actual wagon builder.

"Would you really have been able to Fetch them all to the village, though?" asked Lyek.

"Honestly, I'm not sure," said Ruk. "But it may have been equally possible to go to the village without them, and then build a Gate."

"Well," said Saria, "we're likely to have this problem again, so I suppose it's a good idea to know what won't work next time."

"And I've learned how to make furniture with Mage Gift," joked Ruk.

"Ugly furniture," said Saria.

"But functional," said Ruk.

"I'd hate to see how uncomfortable a chair might be," said Lyek.

"Quiet, youngling," said Ruk.

They proceeded to the village. It took a few more candlemarks than they had thought it might, mostly because the wagon did not roll as easily on its poorly made wheels as a well-built one would. They reminded themselves to have more respect for the wheelmakers from now on; not that they didn't respect them, but now they had a better idea of how hard it actually was. The sheriff did his best not to laugh at the quality of the wagon, but it was obvious he thought it was particularly poorly made.

"It's ok," Ruk told him. "You can laugh. You can also have it as firewood, if you like."

"I think I will," said the sheriff. "May as well use it to heat the room these fellas will be housed in rather than wood we actually had to pay for. Thanks for bringing them in."

They retrieved their packs and reloaded their mounts, now thankfully unburdened by the wagon, and resumed their travels.

"Next time I'll definitely at least attempt to Fetch them," said Ruk. "It has to be easier than that was."

:And much more dignified.: said Lyesa.

"Sorry, Lyesa," said Ruk. "If it makes you feel any better at all, Shin'a'in horses don't particularly like pulling wagons either, so while you disliked it in a completely different manner and for different reasons, none of you were having any fun."

:Hmph.: said Lyesa.

"This is going to make a great story to tell Jacqui when we get home," said Saria. "And Kiri, too."

"Yes, it would," said Ruk. "But we're never going to tell it, are we dear wife?"

"Oh, of course we are," said Saria. "We have to remain humble and down-to-earth. We can't give in to our enormous reputations and pretend all of our ideas are golden and perfect."

"Hmph," said Ruk. "Funny how it's only MY bad ideas that get publicized."

"My ideas ARE golden and perfect," joked Saria. "Also, your reputation is a bit bigger than mine."

"Maybe, but my head's smaller," joked Ruk.

"Appropriate," said Saria.

"You guys are joking, right?" asked Lyek. "Because neither one of you has a small head, or a small reputation!"

"Oh we're joking, alright," said Saria. "But it's true, not every idea we've ever had has been a good one. Just like not every idea you're going to have will be a good one. It's always a good thing to remember; you're a Herald. You're going to have a lot of power over people, a lot of influence. People will look at you for an example, and it's going to be easy to slip into thinking pretty highly of yourself."

"None of that is to say that you don't have reason to think highly of yourself, you're certainly worthy of it," said Ruk. "But always remember you're not infallible. You can make mistakes. You will make mistakes. And some of those mistakes will have enormous cost. Learn from them, so you can do better next time, and always remember to think through your ideas before just blindly believing they're good ones."

"Or I'll end up with a wagon good for nothing but firewood," said Lyek.

"Exactly," said Ruk.

"I know I'm young, I'm inexperienced and I've made enough mistakes to have earned your wrath on this trip – but I have been paying attention!" said Lyek.

"And you've done very well, learning from mistakes," said Ruk. "I wish I didn't have to be hard on you. I wouldn't, but the consequences for mistakes on a mission like this are severe, and we just don't have the time or the leisure to be gentle about it."

"I know," said Lyek. "Believe me, I don't want this mission to fail, either. First, I want to live. Second, I don't want my failure to result in either of your deaths. Third, I don't want the failure of our mission to result in the deaths of all the people who would die in a war with the Eastern Empire, or the fall of Valdemar altogether."

"That is thinking like a Herald," said Ruk.

"It's about time," joked Lyek.

"No," said Saria. "You've always thought like a Herald. Your mistakes were based in lack of experience and the fact that you also think like a teenage boy, which is fitting, since that's exactly what you are."

"I'm eighteen!" said Lyek indignantly.

"Exactly," said Ruk.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter fourteen**

The team continued their journey. It took another sennight to arrive at the guardpost; they were hindered by bandits, but also small groups of Empire fighters that appeared to have become separated from their units. Ruk wondered whether they might have been deserters, but it didn't matter much; no matter where they were from, the survivors went to the prison gangs and the dead – well, they were dead. But the part that did matter was the fact that they were better equipped than simple bandits, and by the time the group arrived at the guardpost, each of them had several minor injuries that required rest and Healing. Ruk had a slice through the left leg that had it not been for Saria's Healing ability, would have meant the loss of the leg altogether; it had nearly been sliced through. Lyek had a broken forearm which had only been splinted, since keeping Ruk's leg attached had required most of Saria's energy. Saria herself had a serious concussion. The horses and Lyesa, too, had some nagging injuries from an arrow here and an errant blade there.

As a result, the team was obliged to stay at the guardpost for a couple of nights. Saria requested and received the assistance of the guard Healer, since bone healing for Lyek's arm would take all of her energy and leave none for anyone else. Saria insisted on finishing the work on Ruk's leg herself, so the guard Healer worked on Lyek's arm and Saria's concussion; Saria took care of the horses and Lyesa, using Ruk's energy. Ruk was angry at the delay, but it couldn't be helped; they couldn't go galavanting into the Empire with nagging injuries. Particularly the horses; if they needed to turn tail and run quickly, the horses needed to be in full health. If Ruk was going to succeed at taking down Melles, she also needed to be in full health. So the delay was regrettable, but necessary; the only consolation was the fact that since all the fighting was in Hardorn, once they crossed the border they were likely to not have to deal with bandits anymore.

"We're sure glad to have you here," said Lian, the captain of the guardpost. "Our men are running hard and thin here; we're glad to know the Crown is doing something to help us out of this situation."

"This mission is not common knowledge, Lian," said Ruk sternly. "If word gets out about our purpose, we will be defeated before we have a chance to strike. You can be glad all you want, but you're going to have to keep it to yourself."

"That's fine, but how do you expect to explain it to the men?" asked Lian. A valid question, one Ruk had not considered. Sheka. "I mean, I'm not gonna tell 'em, but they see three of their own crossing the border and leaving the Companion behind, well, a lot of 'em aren't too bright but there are a few will figure it out. Word will spread. And then – well, I run a tight ship, but there's always a risk someone will try to get rich quick by sharing that information with the wrong people, and that's just the ones who will spread it on purpose. You know information like this won't stay secret for long."

"You're absolutely right," said Ruk. "Unfortunately, it's not a part of the plan that had occurred to me. Damn."

"Well, you're going to have to come up with something," said Lian. "I'll do my part by keeping mum, but I can't keep the men from putting it together on their own."

"No, of course not," said Ruk. "I should have thought of this. Hellfires, the Crown should have thought of it, it's their plan. No way would I be taking three people, one of them an untrained Herald, on this kind of mission."

"I wondered about that," said Lian. "Seems like too many people on what should be a covert mission."

"Well, there are reasons for it," said Ruk. She did not, however, go into those reasons; there was no reason to let Lian, a guard captain for Hardorn, believe that the Valdemaran Crown was incompetent. Particularly when it appeared the Companions themselves were behind this particular choice.

This was a serious dilemma. Ruk was angry at herself for not thinking of it herself; she had been so focused on laying the false trail for their characters, it had not occurred to her that the guardpost would be a problem. But now it seemed so obvious; even if they managed to get the team across the border without anyone the wiser, they would surely notice a lone Companion staying here for several moons. She decided to consult Lyesa directly about it, since she could always illusion them across the border but couldn't hide Lyesa.

"Lyesa," she started. She did not bespeak the Companion except when necessary; it was rude. "how are we going to keep the guard from wondering why there is a lone Companion staying here? If the word gets out around this camp of our mission, we are done."

:They will not notice me: Lyesa said. Ruk was not satisfied with this answer.

"They won't notice you?" she said. "A Companion, in a country that does not often see them particularly on this end of it, hanging out in their stables for at least the entire season, and they're not going to notice? You expect me to be satisfied with that?"

Lyesa didn't respond, just looked smug and didn't answer.

"No," said Ruk. "You lot can get away with non-answers and being all mysterious to your Chosen all you like, but that's not going to work with me. I am risking my life, my lifebonded's life, as well as the life of YOUR Chosen on this mission, and you will not brush me off by looking all smug and mysterious. Now out with it, how will they not notice a big white horse in the middle of their camp?"

:You are not the only one with magic.: said Lyesa, still insisting on evading the question.

"So you're going to illusion yourself? Is that it?" asked Ruk. Lyesa did not answer.

:You will not brush me off, Lyesa. If you continue trying, I will abort this mission altogether. I do not have to continue, and I will not do so unless you cooperate.: she said.

Lyesa put her ears back and snorted, but gave in.

:Yes,: she said, :I am going to keep myself illusioned. They will see a deer out in the field and a regular horse in the stable that no one is quite sure whose horse it is, but everyone will recognize it as being part of the stable.:

"Alright," said Ruk. "I will make an illusion so that no one notices us leave, and you will keep yourself from being noticed. For a season. This mission is getting more and more unlikely to succeed every day…"

Lyesa tossed her head and stalked off. Ruk went to find Saria and discuss this latest development. She was angry; she did not like this mission. She didn't like that she hadn't had any real influence in how it was carried out or the fact that the Companions had kept so much of the reasoning behind it secret. She wondered if they really did have a reason or if they had just wanted a Herald to be present during it; she rather suspected the latter. But mostly, she did not like that it was her life, and Saria's, that was put on the line according to someone else's plan while that person sat safe in a palace back in Haven. Not to mention Lyek's own life.

"This plan is more and more unlikely to succeed, and there's nothing we can do about it," said Saria. "You're sure we can't just Gate Lyek home again?"

"I suppose we could," said Ruk. "But I'm afraid the Queen would just get Elspeth to Gate him back."

"Can she?" asked Saria. "I don't mean the Queen, I mean Elspeth – is she capable of Gating him this far?"

"I believe so, particularly with Darkwind to back her up, and that Heartstone under the Palace," said Ruk. "We may have more raw power than she has, but she is by no means weak, or unskilled."

"That's true, but do you really think they'd go that far?" asked Saria.

"The Queen on her own? No, of course not. But under the advice of their Companions? Of course," said Ruk. "And Kero said, the Companions seem to be the ones making the decision to send Lyek, not the Queen."

"Yes, but Elspeth won't comply with something just because Gwena tells her to. She will demand answers," said Saria.

"Maybe that's what we should push for, then," said Ruk. "If we are to get answers, make Elspeth get them from Gwena."

"Lyesa won't tell you?" asked Saria.

"I don't think Lyesa knows the reason her Chosen was sent in the first place," said Ruk. "I don't think they've told her. Whatever counts as Companion hierarchy, or council, she's just doing as she's told."

"I can't imagine risking the life of my Chosen because the Companion council told me to," said Saria. "I mean, that would be like sending you on a mission to risk your life because the Queen said so."

"And yet that is exactly what we are doing," said Ruk. "We are haring off to parts unknown on a mission of questionable likelihood for success without having a real say-so in the plan."

"That is disturbingly true," said Saria. "Still, what will we do? Gate him back, or proceed?"

"I think I need to talk to Kero," said Ruk.

"Probably a good idea," said Saria.

Ruk settled herself onto the bed with her back against that wall. From this distance, in order to have a conversation consisting of more than 'hello', she needed to be in trance to Mindspeak Kerowyn. Saria settled herself as well, both to guard against intrusion and to monitor Ruk's energies.

:Kero: Ruk began.

:Taia!: Kerowyn answered immediately. :You caught me in the middle of a weapons class. What's wrong?:

:What's always wrong,: said Taia. :This plan is not well designed. Had it occurred to you that the Hardornen guardpost would have a hard time keeping the secret of this mission?:

:Yes.: said Kero. :Sayvil assures me that Lyesa will keep herself illusioned. We figured you could handle the rest.:

:Does it not bother you that there are so many unnecessary risks in this plan?: asked Taia.

:Honestly?: said Kerowyn. :Yes. Yes, it bothers me a great deal. But what's your option?:

:We can still Gate Juren back to Haven.: said Taia. :And I'm not above doing it.:

:Of course you're not, and I wouldn't blame you.: said Kerowyn. :But you would lose your communication with Haven on your progress, which we do need. And Selenay told me that if you do so, she will have Elspeth Gate him back. I asked. Rather forcefully.:

:Of course,: said Taia. :I assumed. But perhaps she could convince Gwena to divulge why the Companions feel the need for this plan, with all the added risks and the decreased likelihood of success?:

:I share your frustration, truly I do.: said Kero. :But I have spoken with Sayvil at length about this. Sayvil knows that I don't tolerate deception and manipulation any more than Elspeth does, and she says that should the mission fail, in order to have an army available in time of any size, it is crucial that we have word of it before the rumor would reach Haven. She has assured me that the Companions have weighed the options and while they know having Juren present decreases the likelihood of success, the communication is truly necessary.:

:Very well,: said Taia. :I still don't like it. But I realize my complete lack of options in the matter.:

:Safe travels, Taia.: said Kerowyn. :May the Star Eyed guard your path.:

:Thank you.: said Taia.

Ruk opened her eyes. The effort to Mindspeak Kero from this distance had exhausted her; but it was worth it. She still didn't like the plan, but at least she knew the Companions were communicating with somebody. And they were acknowledging the increased risk to the mission, which made her feel a great deal better; at least they weren't just playing games.

"What did she say?" asked Saria.

"She said that Selenay has already told her that should we Gate Lyek back to Haven, she will have Elspeth Gate him back," said Ruk. "The Companions acknowledge the additional risk to the mission, but they still believe their need for immediate knowledge of the possible failure of it outweighs the additional risk."

"I still think it's a draw," said Saria. "and I'd prefer to make the decision myself."

"So would I," admitted Ruk. "But I do feel better knowing that they are not just being mysterious and risking our lives without consideration."

"That is true," said Saria. "I do find their mysteriousness around their reasoning to be a bit disturbing, to say the least. I mean, of course they are good, and they don't risk lives without need; but sometimes the fact that they don't consult us, and don't let us have any say in the matter of our mission is unsettling, and does not lead me to want to comply."

"Absolutely," said Ruk. "I still don't know whether or not I agree, but I suppose it cannot be helped. There are valid reasons for both sending Lyek home and taking him with us, and no matter how many times we go around and around about it, the result is the same. We will proceed, and may the Star Eyed help us."

"May she indeed," said Saria. "May she indeed."


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter fifteen**

Ruk and Saria had intended to leave the guardpost the next morning, but Lian asked them to stay for one more day in order to help Heal some of their injured soldiers. The skirmishing on this part of the border had been heavy, and the guardpost Healers were exhausted. Saria exhausted her own energies taking their place for a day, as well as what Ruk had recovered since Mindspeaking Kerowyn. When she had done all she could, the group packed the belongings they absolutely needed in their saddlebags; Lyek finally parted with his stuffed pad under his bedroll. Clothing, weapons, medicinal herbs and spices; their tents and bedrolls, travel rations and that was all. They would hunt for fresh meat, but they would no longer have access to breads or fruits; they didn't know the towns of the Empire between the border and the Palace, and besides leaving magical tags on a few inns they decided it was too much of a risk to run. If they blew their cover before they even reached the Palace, the mission was over and they wouldn't even have a chance to try. Kisten carried the tent and bedrolls for Saria and Ruk, while Maleh carried the food for the three of them; Kiani carried all of Lyek's personal gear.

Ruk and Saria had debated throughout the journey whether or not it would, in fact, be a good idea to stop at some of those Empire towns; on the one hand, it risked blowing their cover. On the other, it would give them a chance to practice their Empire personas in the actual Empire before they reached the Palace, possibly correcting flaws before they could become a problem. In the end, they decided to stop at an inn outside the Palace for the night before they arrived; that way, if they did blow their cover, Ruk thought it still might be possible to sneak into the Palace and complete their mission. Perhaps that should have been the plan all along; no masquerading as someone else, no illusions, just sneak into the Palace and assassinate Melles. She thought that in many ways, that would make the job easier; but at the same time, it would be beneficial to learn about the Empire's true military strength, and for that they needed the undercover work. Also, with as suspicious as Melles was rumored to be, it would have been at least nearly impossible, if not completely so.

They loaded up the horses before the sun rose and began their last leg of the journey just as it peeked itself above the horizon. They were all nervous about crossing the border, so when they came to it they stopped for just a few moments to eat some breakfast and water the horses. Ruk and Saria set the birds to scouting ahead, high enough to be out of arrow range; they also illusioned them to appear to be crows, so as not to attract ambitious hunters at any distance. When they finally crossed the border, they laughed a bit at themselves; the countryside didn't know there was a border there. They had taken a small game trail in order to avoid any Empire guardposts, so they didn't actually encounter any Empire citizens or buildings. They did make sure to speak only in the Empire language, however, and not Valdemaran or Hardornen; just in case there were any hunters around, they did not need to be overheard speaking a language that would give them away.

Surprisingly, just as they had on the Hardornen border, they encountered bandits on this one as well; Hardornen troops that had gotten trapped on the wrong side of the border and lost, farmers who had lost their crop to the marauding soldiers and were now desperate, and ne'er do wells that were taking advantage of the chaos – that didn't change no matter which side of a border one was on. They were dispatched in the same manner that they had been on the Hardornen side, however; fairly easily and without much fuss. It was more of a challenge, however, to determine what to do with the offenders; they couldn't just deliver them at the nearest town for prison or work details as they had done in Hardorn. In the end, they made certain that any injury that was life-threatening to a bandit who appeared to be a Hardornen soldier or a farmer was Healed until it was no longer life-threatening but no more, and anyone who appeared to be simply taking advantage of the chaos was left to either find help on his own or perish. They couldn't waste all of their time or energy caring for their attackers.

As it was, most of their evenings, after setting up camp, were spent Healing their own injuries. Which meant, since Saria was the only one with a Healing Gift, Ruk did most of the cooking and Lyek did most of the set up.

:Different prey.: said Sera one night.

:Bigger.: agreed Ryki.

:Yes.: answered Ruk. :There are elk here, not deer. And the rabbits are bigger. There are more wolves, more bears.:

:Syen likes it.: said Sera.

:I imagine she does.: said Ruk. :She always did like hunting larger prey.:

:Brags.: complained Ryki.

:She is a bigger bird.: said Ruk. :But there are things you two can do that she can't. She cannot be a messenger. She cannot scout at night.:

:True.: said Ryki. :But soon Jyus will be messenger, not me.:

:You are best scout.: said Ruk. It was true – Syen could scout from higher altitudes, but if Ruk or Saria needed a closer up view, Ryki was the best pick. Jyus could fly closer to the ground, but his vision was not as sharp as a hawk-eagle, and to get the same clarity he had to fly within range of an arrow; Ryki did not. Sera, as the owl-eagle, was the designated night watch, hunter and scout; Jyus, being the smallest, flew the fastest and would serve as an excellent messenger when he was fully grown. Syen, being the largest, was the best bet at bringing down larger and more dangerous prey, but her size was hard to hide.

:Plus, if you were as big as Syen, I could not carry you.: said Ruk. :I like to be able to carry you, particularly if you are injured or I am cold.:

:Yes.: Sera and Ryki responded together.

"I am really enjoying the different meats that the birds are bringing us," said Saria.

"The birds are enjoying the challenge of hunting them, as well," said Ruk. "Ryki is jealous though that Syen brings down even the largest with so little effort."

"Syen will never admit that it is more difficult for her than she makes it appear!" laughed Saria.

"What's it like to have a bondbird?" asked Lyek.

"It's somewhat the same as having a Companion, but not as strong of a bond," said Ruk.

"The Companion bond is more similar to the lifebond I have with Ruk," said Saria. "You're familiar with those, yes?"

"Yes," said Lyek. "They frighten me. I can't imagine having someone know everything I'm thinking and feeling."

"But Lyesa knows all of those things, and it doesn't frighten you, does it?" asked Ruk.

"Well, yes, but that's different," said Lyek.

"It isn't," said Saria. "Do you in return know everything Lyesa is thinking or feeling?"

"No," said Lyek.

"But I know everything Ruk is feeling, just as she knows everything I do," said Saria. "It's like having someone beside me all the time, someone I trust and love, and who loves and trusts me. I am never alone, just as you are never alone. I have Ruk; you have Lyesa."

"I wouldn't want to have someone else die because I did, either, though," said Lyek.

"But if you die, Lyesa dies. If Lyesa is killed, you follow her to the afterlife," said Ruk. "So you already have that consequence; the only difference is you have it with a Companion, and I have it with my lifebonded."

"I suppose," said Lyek. "Still, I'm not sure I would want to have one. I would rather have someone love me because they want to, not because some bond says they have to."

"Now that is a valid criticism of a lifebond," said Saria. "There have been cases, however rare, of people being lifebonded who didn't even like each other! But back to your original question about the bondbirds. They are not as intelligent as people or Companions, although they are more intelligent than their wild counterparts. You've already noticed that they're bigger. It is a soul-level bond, but not the type that leaves us soul-empty when they pass. We do survive their loss, and they would survive the loss of us, although they would become wild at that point. But we do speak to each other, we do aid each other, and Ruk and I can, with the birds' permission, take over their minds and see through their eyes."

"Interesting," said Lyek.

"It is more like a very close family, I think, than like the bond between yourself and Lyesa," said Ruk. "Although I would not know; my family was never close."

"Mine either," said Saria. "I was started in on mage classes when I was very young, and didn't spend a lot of time with even my parents after my potential was discovered; my brother was out scouting at that point."

"I was close to Brandi," said Ruk. "But my father died when I was a child and my mother rejected me when I showed mage potential. My twin was embarrassed by me, since that mage potential made her life harder as well, and my younger sister was too young to listen to anyone but mother."

"Wow," said Lyek. "I have always been close to both of my parents and my sisters. I can't even imagine life without them, it's been hard not to be able to contact them during this trip."

"I'm sorry," said Ruk. "Hopefully, we'll be done with this mission quickly, and when we are at a safe distance from the Palace I will Gate us home; I have no desire to be in this Empire any longer than absolutely necessary."

"That would be wonderful," said Lyek. "Lyesa can begin returning to Haven immediately upon our success, and then we could arrive at the same time!"

"How are you doing being separated from her?" asked Saria. "Ruk and I have not been voluntarily separated since we were teenagers; I can't imagine that would be easy for you, either."

"It is difficult," admitted Lyek. "I keep forgetting that Kiani cannot read my thoughts and I actually have to direct her, for just practical problems; but I can still sense Lyesa and hear her, so it's not as bad as I had believed it might be."

"Well, that's something, at least," said Ruk. She would never have agreed to be separated from Saria, so she was surprised that Lyek was handling it so easily. The only time she and Saria had been separated since the day they met was when Ruk had been held captive.

They continued their journey. The scenery was different from Valdemar; more forest, less field. Unlike Valdemar and Hardorn, there were very few small villages; most people lived in cities, which the group was attempting to avoid as much as possible. Ruk placed magical tags on the inns she could find in the evenings while Saria was healing their various injuries; as they got farther from the border, however, the banditry became less prevalent and soon ceased altogether. Every few evenings, Ruk used Farsight and Saria's energy to place tags on distant inns, to further confuse their backtrail. The more confusing their trail was, the better; it would both provide more time for their escape and more importantly, more time to build and move an army to face the Empire's inevitable response. She wished there was some way she could contrive a plan for the actual assassination attempt, but she would not be able to do so until they had been in the Palace for a few days and able to learn Melles' routines.

She did use Farsight a few times to watch the Palace and learn as much about it as she could. She could see the city, and she learned its streets and gates so that they would be able to escape quickly; she was able to find the Palace grounds, and was dismayed by how difficult it was to see inside its buildings. She was also dismayed by how well the walls were guarded; if they had to run, she was not sure how they would be successful. If the gates were closed, there was no possibility they would be able to fight off the guards quickly enough to open them and escape, particularly if they were being chased. She decided the only possibility would be to either Fetch the gates open, or Fetch them across the walls altogether; either option was difficult, and would be made more so by riding at breakneck speed through the city, and possibly even fighting along the way.

"Saria," she said one evening. "I don't want to be pessimistic, but I want to be prepared for all possible outcomes."

"Of course," said Saria. "Hope for the best, plan for the worst, and as many contingencies as you can. What are your thoughts?"

"Well," began Ruk, "you have seen the same things I have seen regarding the layout of the Palace and its grounds. You have seen how difficult an escape would be, were we not able to leave without anyone the wiser of why we were leaving."

"Yes," said Saria. "And I don't really see how it would be possible."

"There are two possibilities that I can see," said Ruk. "One, I Fetch the gate open as we run through it, but that would be extremely difficult and require impeccable timing. Two, I Fetch us to the other side of the gate as we're running towards it. Or the wall, whichever. Which would also be extremely difficult, particularly if we're fighting our way towards it to begin with."

"Hm," said Saria. "Either one would require you to be completely focused on Fetching, and not your physical defense. I can compensate for that defense somewhat, but for how long, I'm not sure. I suppose the birds could help with that, but that would put them at great risk, and I'm not sure it would be the best idea."

"That is true," said Ruk. "Lyek would be entirely responsible for his own defense, and perhaps mine as well; he is certainly a good fighter, but I don't know how well he would be able to accomplish that."

"I think he would be able to, for the amount of time it would take you to finish the task," said Saria. "I guess we'll have that as the basic plan and do the best we can when the time comes. I do think it's a better idea to Fetch us, though, rather than the gate."

"I do as well," said Ruk. "First, the timing doesn't have to be in as much consideration. Second, we don't have to exit via a gate at all, we can just Fetch across a wall. Escape into a forest, rather than be limited to the road."

"Absolutely," said Saria. "Have you gotten an idea of the layout of the Palace itself?"

"No," said Ruk. "I am not able to see inside it very well. Only the layout of the buildings and the town surrounding it."

"Well, I suppose we'll just have to learn fast when we get there," said Saria.

The journey to the town outside the Palace took a moon. When they finally arrived, they spent one night at an inn to collect themselves before they presented themselves at the Palace for employment. They rose with the sun and ate their breakfast – and then they were off to the Palace.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter sixteen**

It was a cloudy day. Rain was in the air, but hadn't fallen yet. Ruk briefly wondered if it was an omen that the mission was doomed, but brushed that off as ridiculous; she didn't believe in omens. They had decided to just walk into the Palace in their respective positions and begin working, as if they had been there all along and of course they were employed and hope no one asked questions. Otherwise, there was too much possibility that they would not be hired at all, and then the mission was failed. Ruk had noticed how easy it was to infiltrate a Palace or especially a noble house by pretending to be a servant; no one really looked at servants. Haven was a bit different, in that most of the servants were either Blues or Herald Trainees; these were screened before hire either by their Choosing or the fact that they were largely the children of nobility. But the palace at Rethwellan? Or Jkatha? Easily infiltrated as a servant. She hoped that was the case in the Empire, as well.

They had left everything but their clothing and weapons bundled and hidden in a tree along the way; they would fetch it on the way out, should they succeed, and if they did not it wouldn't matter. They entered one at a time, Ruk first. She went directly to the stables and began mucking out the stalls, ignoring everyone around her as if she were supposed to be there. No one paid her any heed; so far, this was off to a good start. Saria was next; she walked into the kitchen after Ruk came to fetch Maleh and began washing dishes. No one noticed her arrival. Lyek was last; if someone were to get caught, Ruk figured it would be Lyek since he had the least experience. She hated to put the boy at risk at all, but if someone were to get caught, the other two needed to be already in place. Once someone was caught, the rest of the Palace would be on the alert and it would be difficult, if not impossible, to get the other two in. Lyek, posing as a household servant, also had the most difficult job to blend into; he found a broom and began sweeping a floor. They were all in place. Now it was just a matter of paying attention and waiting for the appropriate time to strike.

The first day proceeded without incident; Ruk learned the name of the head stableman and a few others, and any time anyone approached her with a question of who she was, she said she was the new stableman hired by whichever name came to mind first. It was dangerous, of course; but this whole mission was dangerous. If she did a good job, she figured no one would bother asking the person who supposedly hired her; so she just focused on doing a good job, so that no one would have reason to. She mucked out all the stalls and then began exercising the horses and brushing them down; pretty soon, no one was asking her questions. She did hear them talking about the new stablehand and how great it was that 'he' was there, because their jobs just got a lot easier.

Saria followed the same principle; she washed every dish she could find, and then scrubbed down the kitchens. When that was finished, she began making pies with the fruit she found around the kitchen. Since this was a palace, and she wasn't just cooking for herself, Ruk and Lyek around the fire, she focused on making the pastry fancy, with pretty crimped edges and woven tops; she whipped up some cream and flavored it with juice to match the pies, and added it to the dish. This was a real challenge for her; she was a good cook, she could make delicious food with the best of them. But she wasn't used to making it look fancy, and not to mention that making pastry was her biggest weakness.. Cooking over a fire in the woods after an entire day of riding, neither she nor Ruk particularly cared what their food looked like; they only cared whether or not it tasted good and was ready to eat quickly. She had spent a good deal of time in Tremane's castle learning to make meals with fancy presentation, and she hoped it would be sufficient.

Lyek was having a hard time. He had kept up sweeping all day long, since he never encountered any other servants and he could determine what they were doing; he had hoped to join one of them on their task and that way he would integrate himself into the group. He wasn't sure how well he would be able to do in this position, since he could hardly continue sweeping every day for the entire mission. Well, he supposed he could, but it didn't seem particularly practical. So he made a point of moving from one room to the next, trying to at least overhear something useful to his part of the mission; but all he got was lost. At the end of the day, his arms were tired from sweeping and he had made no progress at becoming integrated into the servants area. He didn't even know where they slept at night; this was, at this point, his biggest problem. So he went to the kitchens, where he figured the servants would eat at the end of the day and finally he caught a break; Saria saw him and served him his meal.

:How is it going?: she asked him.

:Terrible.: Lyek answered. :I haven't been able to speak to anyone, all of the servants just rush about their own business and I haven't learned a thing other than that sweeping the floors all day makes my arms hurt. I don't even know where to go to sleep.:

:Well, that I can help you with.: said Saria. :When they are done eating, just follow one of them. Sit at a table until everyone else is in bed, and then you can take whatever one is available. If none are, sleep on the floor in a corner. I will be along shortly, kitchen staff sleep with the rest of the servants.:

:How do you know that?: asked Lyek.

:I've been able to have some discreet conversations with one of the other scullery cooks, and asked her.: replied Saria.

:Ok.: said Lyek. Why hadn't he thought of that? In the morning, he would follow someone and help with whatever chore they were doing. He could do this. It was hard, but he could do this. He knew he could. He had to.

So he followed one of the servants to the sleeping quarters; a giant room with worn out beds and ratty mattresses. He sighed; he preferred his bedroll. Maybe he could get Ruk to Fetch it here…..no, that wouldn't be right. He had to look like just one of the other servants. Besides if Saria could do it, so could he. Sure enough, Saria arrived a few candlemarks later and one of the other kitchen staff pointed out a free bed for her; Lyek waited for a while longer, chatting with one of the other servants and then took what appeared to be the last remaining bed.

Neither slept particularly well; Lyek, because the bed was lumpy and uncomfortable, and he couldn't stop thinking about the mites and lice that likely lived in the mattress. Saria, because she and Ruk had not slept apart since Ruk was held prisoner by Falconsbane; stablehands slept in the stable. Ruk didn't sleep well, either; not because her bale of hay was uncomfortable, but like Saria she missed her lifebonded. This had not been something they had foreseen; on the other hand, they hadn't entirely determined exactly how they would infiltrate the Palace until the night before their arrival. They had always assumed they would enter as a 'family'; and if asked they still would be. But at the last moment, they decided that three people entering the Palace at once was suspicious and therefore dangerous. Ruk had managed to see with Farsight that no one in the servants' quarters particularly interacted with each other, and all of them appeared to be single; this was strange, she thought, but to arrive as something other than that would have been immediately suspicious. So they entered separately, but that meant they had to remain separate. Which was difficult for her and Saria to do.

:I don't like sleeping without you.: she said.

:Me neither.: answered Saria. :It feels strange. I don't feel your breath on my neck, or hear your heartbeat next to me. I hope we get this over with quickly.:

:Have we even seen Melles yet?: Ruk asked.

:No.: said Saria. :Lyek is having trouble integrating with the servants; he's not doing anything wrong, but they're a very insular group. They don't work together, everyone has his or her own task and, well, he doesn't have one, for obvious reasons. I spent the whole day baking pies, so I don't know how or when this is going to show any fruit.:

:Sheka.: said Ruk. :I want to get this mission over with, both so we can go home and be away from this place and the danger of discovery and also so I can sleep next to you again!:

:Priorities.: joked Saria. :Maybe tomorrow will shed more light; we only just got here. And after awhile, I can probably sneak out to the stables to spend some time with you!:

:Let's hope.: said Ruk. :Goodnight, my love.:

:Goodnight, Taia.: said Saria. She sent a wave of love through the lifebond and both went to sleep, as well as they could.

The next morning, they resumed their roles. Today, Saria had to focus on making the side courses to the luncheon; apparently, there was a feast planned. The head cook was roasting several pigs, while Saria was working on helping with the fowl. This was at least something she was more familiar with than fancy pie; while she had also never attempted to make the birds roasted over the campfire attractive, she made some of the best roast pheasant anywhere. She cleaned the birds, saving the feathers to stuff pillows with later as all servants did; then stuffed them with sweet breads and spices and roasted them whole. She positioned their wings as if they were in flight and put cherry tomatoes in their beaks; when they were finished, she used roasted cabbage in place of their feathers and filled the 'bowl' with roasted vegetables. She thought it looked ridiculous; but the head cook loved it, so she decided it was a success. She finished making them just in time for the feast, during which she and the rest of the cooks began working on dessert.

When the feast was over, the servants piled in and as servants do in all palaces, they ate the leftovers as their meal for the day.

:I saw Melles.: said Lyek. Saria nearly choked on her bread.

:And?: she asked.

:I actually served him that roast pheasant you made, nice work by the way.: he continued. :I thought about slitting his throat then and there, but wasn't sure I could and plus there were guards all over the place. This guy is serious about his security.:

:Sheka.: said Saria. This mission would not be over quickly. :See if you can get an idea of whether or not he has a routine. Keep your ears open also for war plans; if they are getting ready to declare war on Hardorn, we need to up our own risk and get this over with.:

:Will do.: said Lyek. :This is what he looks like.: and he sent a mental image of Melles to Saria, who passed it along to Ruk.

:Well, that's progress, at least.: said Ruk. :I mean, we had Tremane's description, and I had seen him once or twice with Farsight – but now we have confirmation that I saw the right person. Keep watching for a routine, and listen for war plans.:

:That's what I said too.: said Saria. :I want this over with. But I don't think it's going to happen quickly.:

:I think you're right, unfortunately.: said Ruk.

And Saria was, in fact, right. Lyek kept his eyes and ears open like a professional spy with experience; Ruk was actually impressed. He also 'listened' with his Gift, so that if anyone so much as thought about declaring war he 'heard' them. But Melles was a suspicious man; he had been an assassin, he was not a popular leader, and he did not keep to a routine of any kind. He didn't even use the same path to the privy from one time to the next, or even use the same one, or Ruk would have out of frustration waited at the bottom of it, as distasteful as that would have been. Sadly, it wouldn't have been the first time; she had done just that on a mission for the Fire Eagles once. It had not been her favorite task.

They went through their days; it became routine. Ruk mucked stalls, brushed down horses, and exercised them. It occurred to her that ironically, she was finally living the life of a Shin'a'in; on the Plains, she would have been living in a tent and the horses wouldn't have had stalls to muck, but in any case she would have spent her days largely caring for horses and not much else. Saria was getting truly good at cooking fancy dishes, and she found that she rather enjoyed it. It allowed her to be creative; she was expected to come up with something new every day, and so she was forced to do just that. It was also repetitive, and she was able to just blend in with the rest of the cook staff. Lyek did manage to integrate with the rest of the house servants, although it was a near thing. One of the servants asked him one day where he had come from, and Lyek said he had been hired by Dier, the head butler; luckily, Dier had in fact just hired a new servant, and despite the fact that the name of the servant he had actually hired was not Lyek, the servant asking him did not ask that question.

"Howd'ya learn to take care of 'orses like dat?" Tir asked Ruk. Tir was the head stableman; Ruk had told him that she had been hired by Lerok, Tir's assistant, but Ruk didn't want Tir asking questions.

"I grew up with 'em," said Ruk. "Me fambly raises 'orses, and I was youngest, so I got the job o' takin' care o' them most often." She had learned to imitate the dialect of the servant class, as had Saria. Lyek, having not had a lot of contact with them, was having to learn by listening during his meals.

"Ah," said Tir. "That'll do it, I suppose."

"Yep," said Ruk. She wanted to remain friendly, keep the conversation going; she wanted to be assigned to saddle horses for the lords – including Melles – when they came for their ride. But she couldn't be too forward, or Tir might become suspicious; he was not a stupid man. Unfortunately, Tir must have had other things to do, as he ended the conversation there and walked off. Sheka. Ruk seemed to be swearing a lot, lately.

The days flowed together, with none of them looking significantly different from the next. Ruk was growing more frustrated by the day, and Saria was starting to wonder if they would ever catch a break. Lyek was reporting that there was a lot of talk about impending war, but nothing that was concrete; no one seemed to think it would start tomorrow or even in the next sennight, but it was definitely coming. Soon an entire moon had passed; Ruk was starting to wonder if she needed to step up her game and just sneak into the palace somehow, but getting out afterwards seemed unlikely and she wasn't quite ready to sacrifice her life as well as Saria's for that just yet.

Unfortunately, she was afraid that by the time she decided it was worth the risk, it would be too late.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter seventeen**

Melles began taking more frequent rides, but not at any particular time, or in any particular pattern. This was exceptionally frustrating for Ruk; not only did she not have the ability to prepare, but she did not yet have the rank in the stables that she was called to saddle his horse. That was the best way she could think of to accomplish her goal – saddle the horse, and hopefully there wouldn't be anyone else in the stables at that time. While Melles was mounting, well, that was her chance. But the few times she had been called to saddle his horse, the stables had been bustling with guards; hardly ideal circumstances for a quick assassination. She had even considered saddling one of her own horses for him, then giving them the command to buck him off and assassinating him while he was on the ground; but again, the same problem with being surrounded by guards. Besides, like most royals, he had a favorite horse and would certainly notice the difference. Perhaps she would be forced to follow him on Kisten and hope she could take out him and escape his guard; Kisten certainly had more stamina than any of the guard horses, and was battle-trained, but whether or not he was faster she wasn't sure. Shin'a'in horses were not bred to be particularly fast.

She was starting to get very frustrated. She didn't really want to have to defeat the guard in order to assassinate Melles; they were just troops doing their job. But she wasn't sure she'd have any option, if she wanted to succeed at her primary goal. She also, however, wasn't sure she was capable of taking out the entire group by herself; she was good, and in her prime she had been able to take care of between five and ten soldiers alone depending on how well-trained they were. But she was out of practice, and older, and she was quite sure these soldiers were superbly well-trained; she had watched them, and after years of fighting and years of teaching, she could tell by the way they moved, the way they watched everything around them. The probability of her success alone against those soldiers, and there were never less than six, and then being able to take down Melles was not good.

So she and Saria spent their nights on Ruk's bale of hay discussing a plan to get both Saria and Lyek out to the stable at the same time that Melles was going for his ride, or at least a way to get Saria there. Ruk would feel better about having all three of them; Lyek was not fully trained, but he was not a bad fighter, and three against at least seven was a far better shot than two. But while they could communicate via Mindspeech instantly, that did not mean that they could physically arrive at the desired place, prepared for a significant fight, that quickly. Ruk figured she could Fetch them both to wherever she needed them to be, but that hardly made them prepared. Speaking of prepared Fetching, since they had all but decided that they would likely need to Fetch the horses across a wall at full gallop, she needed to practice that. It was one thing to Fetch a person in midstride; a stallion in full gallop and quite possibly fighting off attackers was an entirely different matter. Caught offstride, the horse could easily break a leg and then their flight would be over. Quickly.

So in the evenings, when her stable work was finished, she started with Kisten. She placed a lead rope on him and led him around in a circle, much as she did a new colt she was just beginning to train. She began at a walk; she needed to perfect her timing. If she were a bit off, at a walk the horse might have a bit of a sprain at worst, which could be easily Healed. The first few tries, her timing was off, and Kisten tripped; however, he was not injured. So when she had managed to do that ten times in a row without mistake, she urged him to a trot. A few more misteps, but not as many as in the beginning; again, when she had managed ten times without mistake, she proceeded to a canter, and then only when she was very sure she'd figured out the trick of exactly when to Fetch him – she mounted and urged him to gallop. This made her a little nervous; if she made a mistake, not only could she ruin her favorite horse and only real means of escaping the Empire, she could seriously injure herself in the fall. But she did not make a mistake, and repeated the process several times without error.

She would have a reaction headache the next day and need to continue practicing, since in the actual escape she would likely be distracted by battle; but she had managed the essential part of figuring out exactly how. She repeated the process with Maleh and Kiani, since she needed to know exactly how their gait would make the timing different; she thought it was likely that Saria could Fetch Maleh across herself, and so Saria came with her and they practiced until she could. Ruk's Fetching Gift was stronger, however, so she would be responsible for both Kisten and Kiani. So when they had mastered each horse individually, Ruk began practicing with both Kisten and Kiani, with Saria riding Kiani to simulate Lyek; Lyek was not able to find an excuse to come outside with them, so they would have to settle for what they could get.

"I have learned something that we will find very interesting," said Saria.

"What is that?" asked Ruk.

"Do you remember the legends that Urtho had permanent Gates?" asked Saria.

"Yes," said Ruk. "But the knowledge of how to build them has been lost."

"Not here," said Saria.

"What?!" asked Ruk. "But that's impossible! How could they possibly have known, all these years, how to build them and no one outside the Empire has any idea?"

"I don't know," said Saria. "But I've learned how."

"Can we build one to Haven?" asked Ruk.

"Not without someone here noticing the energy usage," said Saria. "And in truth, I don't know that even the two of us together have that much power without the use of a Heartstone. But when we get home, there's no reason we can't build one to the Vales and the Plains. And really, anywhere else we want. We have to use the Heartstone to build it, but once it's built a Master level mage can trigger it."

"Fantastic!" said Ruk. "Think of how much trouble we'll get into now, running off to the Vales for a hot bath every other day!"

They laughed.

"Oh Goddess, how I would love one of those baths right now, these copper tubs are truly uncivilized!" said Saria.

"That is true," said Ruk. "And I'm getting awfully tired of sleeping on a damned bale of hay, too. I'd kill Melles just for the privilege of my own bedroll at this point, let alone my feather bed!"

"I just can't wait to wear my own face again," said Saria.

"Answer to my own name," said Ruk.

"What, you remember what it is?" asked Saria.

"I sometimes forget I'm not actually an old man," said Ruk. "Or a man at all."

"And what of Lyek?" asked Saria. "What does he report?"

"Not much," said Ruk. "He's not being lax, he legitimately has nothing to report. Melles does not follow any sort of routine. Court is held at any hour of the day, if at all; petitioners arrive at daybreak and sometimes are seen in the mornings, sometimes they wait all day and sometimes they are not seen at all. He goes out riding, but not at any predictable interval; Lyek always notifies me as soon as he knows Melles' plan, but I have so far been unable to wrangle a position close enough to be effective, and he is never without guard of at least six."

"Which you could possibly dispatch on your own, but by no means definitively, and without warning that likelihood is significantly decreased," said Saria.

"Exactly," said Ruk. "And there is no good way to get you in position to help me quickly enough."

"I hate this mission," said Saria. "I hate it. We've been here now for almost two moons, and haven't made a bit of progress other than my accent is better and I can make a pastry pretty enough to please any king. I want to be done with this and go home!"

"Me too," said Ruk. "I may just sneak myself into his bedchambers and get it done, then Fetch myself out."

"That's not the worst idea," said Saria. "Do you even know which rooms are his bedchambers?"

"No," said Ruk. "Of course not. He doesn't use the same ones two nights in a row."

"Figures," said Saria. "That would make it too easy."

"I hear it was tried at one point, and that's why he doesn't sleep in the same bed predictably," said Ruk. "He is not a stupid man."

"No," said Saria. "He is not. If he were, he would not be in this position to begin with."

"True," said Ruk. "I just wish he were slightly more idiotic."

They spent the rest of the moon practicing Fetching the horses, trying to find a pattern in Melles' behavior, trying to find an alternative to just dumb luck. Ruk had already determined that if they did manage to stage an attack and assassination, they would have no time to bring along their belongings; so they kept them packed in the saddlebags with plans to Fetch them out after they passed across the walls. This would be, at best, an attack planned with only a few minutes to prepare. So Ruk spent her time making sure she was always near the saddling area, so that when she got word that Melles was on his way she could at least be in position to make an effort to make an attempt at assassination. But it was another fortnight before she could reliably be in appropriate position.

The weather had improved, and with it Melles' desire to be outdoors. He began to take daily rides out to the forest; Ruk wished he would take a predictable route, as she was sure that even if she were not present to saddle his horse she could head him off with her own. But alas, as he never took the same passage through the Palace, never slept in the same room two nights in a row, he never took the same path through the forest either. She could watch him with Farsight, but in order to get ahead of him, she needed to know what direction he was going to go, not which direction he was going at present. The paths in the woods turned off into different paths, different game trails, quite frequently; it was impossible to tell which way Melles was going to take until he had actually taken it. And by then it was too late to get out ahead of him, even if Kisten and Maleh had been bred for speed and not stamina and intelligence. She decided that if they managed to survive this stupidity of a mission, she would look into cross-breeding an Ashkevron racer to get a little speed into her herd. Shin'a'in breed purity be damned to the nine hells, sometimes speed was necessary, and she wanted the option.

Another fortnight. Now it had been an entire season they had spent in the Empire, and summer was upon them; war season. Ruk knew it took time to establish undercover personas, and time to establish the rank required to be in position to accomplish her goal; but she also knew that the fighting was picking up on the Hardornen border. It wasn't quite all-out war, but it was getting close. The skirmishes were reported as just shy of full battles; in fact, the skirmishes were themselves battles, but did not quite rank as war. However, it was only a matter of time before it became war, and the Hardornen forces were only barely holding off the Empire. Lyek had reported that Melles was planning on sending the entire army at Hardorn within the next sennight; and when they reached the border, Hardorn would be conquered within the season with or without Valdemar's assistance. Time was growing critical.

And so it came on a cloudy day, much like the one they'd arrived on, that their opportunity finally arrived. It was hot; stifling hot. A storm was moving in, but would not arrive for at least another several days, and the heat was oppressive. Ruk was drenched in sweat before midday mucking stalls, and Saria in the kitchens; Lyek was the only one seemingly unbothered. Ruk did not expect that Melles would have any desire to exert himself on a day such as this; had she had any choice in the matter, she would have submerged herself in the pond and not come out until well after dark. This was as bad as any battle she had ever fought in Seejay; at least there, it rained during the hottest parts of the year and there was a brief respite from this horrid, heavy heat. Ruk could only dream of the cool, stone walls of the Palace back in Haven and a quick swim in the Terilee during the hottest parts of the day to cool off. She had just buried her head in the horse trough, soaking her hair in the tepid water to at least pretend to keep herself from overheating when she heard from Lyek -

:He comes!: he cried frantically into her head. :He comes! And his guard, but he comes, now!:

Sheka.

It was the best chance they were likely to get; the rest of the stablehands had absconded to their own quarters to escape the heat, believing that no one with any sense would be anywhere near any form of exercise on a day like this.

:It's now or never.: she Mindspoke both Saria and Lyek together – and Fetched them both to where she stood. Together they saddled their own horses and prepared for the arrival of Melles' and his guard – hopefully, for the last time.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter eighteen**

Ruk had already decided that the stables themselves would not be an appropriate place for the assassination. Too many horses to get spooked or injured, too close quarters, and too many stablehands to be witnesses or even killed themselves. So in order for this to be at all successful, they needed to get Melles saddled and out of the immediate confines of the stables and surrounding buildings and then follow on their own mounts, quickly, and hopefully without suspicion or significant witnesses. They would need to catch up, soundlessly, and hopefully be able to take out Melles without taking out the guard, and then escape before that guard could catch them.

This mission was laughably difficult. But it must succeed, so Lyek and Saria mounted quickly and got outside the stable and out of sight. Ruk stayed behind, but saddled Kisten as quickly as she could. Melles arrived, and with him the guard; eight men. Sheka. Ruk had hoped that at least they would have one bit of luck and he would have come with merely his minimum of six, but no, eight it was. And they were well armed, too; apparently, they were going on a hunt. Splendid. Ruk was regretting the fact that she had left the warbow at home in Haven, but it was too late for that now. She would have to hope the throwing knives would be sufficient for Melles and the horses faster than those of the guard.

Ruk had Melles' stallion ready when he arrived; and as much as she loved Kisten, she knew he was no match for this stallion in a race. In battle, certainly; and Melles' horse wouldn't survive a sennight without stable grains, whereas Kisten could be perfectly healthy for some time. The horses the guards rode were not significantly inferior to Melles', so they would need a big head start to get past the walls first. On the other hand, the guards couldn't Fetch their horses through a wall; they would have to go through a gate. So if Ruk and her group could make it to the walls first…..

But she was getting ahead of herself. First she had to assassinate Melles at all, before an escape was even something to think of. And Melles was wearing full armor; she would need to throw those knives precisely between his upper body armor and his helmet, between the vertebrae in his neck. While he was moving. While she was moving. That was an incredibly difficult shot; with a bow, it was a difficult shot, and she had never been as precise with the knives as she was with a bow. She swore inwardly again that she had left the warbow in Haven; but even had she brought it, it wouldn't have been concealable. So knives it was. She could do this. She had to do this.

Melles was on his stallion, impatiently waiting for his guard to be ready. Ruk worked as quickly as she could, but there was only one other stablehand on duty at the moment so it took a few moments to get all eight of them ready. She had briefly considered simply not tightening the cinch on Melles' saddle, so that he would fall off the horse and make an easier target, but he was far too an experienced horseman to not notice that immediately. But wait – she could Fetch the cinch looser during the trip. That just might work, and she resolved to do that. Finally the guard was saddled and mounted, and they left the stable. Ruk called Kisten quietly and mounted herself. She quickly urged him through the doors and gave him the signal to move silently; she had trained all three mounts to move silently, at least at a walk, for the purpose of this mission. It was difficult training, but not impossible for Shin'a'in mounts.

She exited the stable. She and Saria had debated asking the birds to help, but decided it was too risky. They, of course, were quite upset with their exclusion, but Ruk wanted them instead to be scouting ahead. Ryki was assigned to keep an eye on Melles himself, so that Ruk would be aware of precisely where their potential attackers were; Sera was responsible for watching the trail ahead once they were beyond the walls. Syen would be watching their backtrail, and Jyus – he had the task of hunting for everyone's evening meal. Hopefully they survived long enough to eat it.

Saria and Lyek came up on either side of Ruk, their mounts moving as silently as Kisten. So far, so good; Melles seemed not to notice that they were being followed. They maintained a healthy distance, though; they were still too close to the Palace, too close to reinforcements to strike. Ruk's heart was beating so fast she was surprised Melles didn't know he was being followed just by hearing it. It had been over a decade since she had assassinated anyone, and then it had been a much more solitary exercise, sneaking into a house and slitting throats by night. She didn't like assassination, to be honest; she preferred an open fight, where each party had the opportunity to see his or her attacker and defend themselves. She had done it only against people so vile, so evil that they needed to be dispatched, and the lack of dispatching them quickly would lead to more innocent deaths. She wasn't entirely sure this qualified; Melles was not a good man, that was certain, but he also didn't abuse his own people any worse than previous Emperors. He wasn't any more or less evil than his predecessors. He just had the misfortune of attacking Hardorn when neither it nor Valdemar could properly defend themselves, and this was the plan Valdemar had decided to pursue instead.

They finally reached the edge of the Palace Grounds, where the buildings were not so closely spaced, they were reasonably sure that witnesses would be minimal, and reinforcements would not be able to arrive in time. Ruk pulled her throwing knives from their sheathes in her forearms and prepared to throw them. She aimed the first one carefully; her target was narrow, and the consequences of failure dire. So she prepared the second as well, so that she would be able to throw it immediately after the first. She took a deep breath, double checked her aim – and threw.

It missed.

Melles had turned his head at the last moment to confer with the guard next to him, causing her throw to be just a millimeter off – and the knife buried itself in his cheek. Painful, for sure, but not deadly. Sheka. She threw the other knife, aiming for his temple – but he had seen them. The element of surprise had been lost. He wrenched his horse around and charged her; she pulled the knives from her boots and threw them as well, even as Saria threw knives at the guards. Both her knives found their marks, but since Melles was wearing full armor – why? Why would he be wearing full armor on a hunt? This thought occurred to her too late, that this wasn't as much a surprise as she had imagined – the knives landed securely in his shoulders, again painful, but not deadly. Saria, though, took out two of the guards.

:You and Juren take out the guards.: she said. :I will worry about Melles. This wasn't a surprise, he knew it was coming, so watch yourself.:

:I wondered about that.: said Saria. :He was wearing full armor. That seems odd even for a paranoid man.:

Too late now; the fight was on. Melles had reached Ruk already and drawn his sword; he fought with one full sword and one short, so Taia did as well. Against some fighters, using two swords against him with these weapons would be an advantage; against a trained fighter like Melles, it would be a disadvantage.

"I saw through your illusions immediately!" he said with a wicked grin. "I saw that the old man was an illusion, so I looked deeper. I saw a younger man – but why would a stablehand need to hide his age? So I looked deeper. I saw you. And so I saw your companions, and your young boy's Gift – I fed him false thoughts. All this time, false thoughts. And now finally, I will send you to your Goddess!"

Sheka. A thousand times, sheka. Melles was smart, it was no wonder he hadn't been successfully assassinated. She couldn't even spare a thought for Whitestar or Juren; she was in a fight for her life right here. Melles was a gifted swordsman, and he had used his magic to preserve himself as a young man; she was fighting with the bones of her true age, and true infirmities. Melles struck with his sword, she blocked and countered with the short; he parried that easily, and so it went. She sensed that he was using magic to augment his abilities, but there wasn't much she could do about it; she was so focused on not being the one assassinated instead of him, she couldn't spare any energy to stop his efforts. So she added to her own magic, sending lightning bolts and fireballs his way, which he shielded easily; this was far less than ideal. The longer this battle took the more likely reinforcements would arrive, and already she could hear hoofbeats.

She redoubled her efforts against Melles; she would have a horrendous reaction headache in the morning after this battle and Fetching everyone across the wall, but first they had to survive. She would be greatful for every throb of her head the next day because it would mean that they had. Whitestar and Juren seemed to be doing fairly well; they had dispatched half of the guard and were on their way to being free of the rest. Taia was making progress against Melles, but from the sounds of those hoofbeats, it was too slow. She parried his short sword hard enough to disarm it, dropped her own and pulled her other sword from her back before he could react – and sliced clean through his left arm. Her other sword had parried his, but the shock and pain of his amputation was an effective distraction and she sliced open his throat as he screamed. A wet gurgle, he dropped his sword and grabbed his throat with the hand he still had; he looked at Taia with a look of shock, disbelief and then toppled from his horse.

She moved immediately to the rest of the guard, but suddenly she was overcome with pain, shock, and fear; it took her a moment to realize that it wasn't her own. She was terrified for a moment, thinking it was Whitestar, but no; it was Juren. A guard had lanced him through the chest. The blade had gone straight through to his back, and would be quickly fatal; if Whitestar had been free, it was possible she could have Healed it, but she could not stop fighting to do so and would have needed Taia's hands to help anyway. Taia was engulfed in Juren's pain; she was paralyzed with it. She realized that his shields had failed when the fatal wound hit and he was projecting, with the full force of his Gift, all of his pain, all of his fear. Then it was over – but only briefly. She was then victim to the loss and the rage of Lyesa as the bond between Chosen and Companion was severed.

So much pain. So much loneliness. So much rage and desperation. She felt Lyesa rear and heard her scream at a foe that from the guardpost, only she could see, she felt the incredible aloneness that shouldn't be there. The empty place where the bond with Juren used to be, was almost completely overwhelming, and she felt herself slipping down the dark hole where Lyesa's consciousness was receding –

"Taia!" yelled Whitestar. "Snap out of it! We're going to be killed as well, snap out of it!"

Taia was pulled back to reality. She clamped down her shields as hard as she could against Lyesa's grief and impending death and got back to the business at hand. There were still three guardsmen they needed to defeat, and if Taia didn't help with that then both she and Whitestar would be joining Juren shortly. She picked up her blades and began to parry and attack the guardsman nearest herself, gave Kiani the command to continue fighting and worked her way to Whitestar. They quickly assumed the positioning that had served them well through so many years as mercenaries with their horses next to each other but facing opposite directions, slowly rotating as they fought in order to make progress. Together, they made quick work of the guards, but the reinforcements were now within arrow range. They would not be able to defeat the entire bunch, so they pulled the bows and arrows off the saddlebags of the guardsmen's horses and took off at an all out gallop towards the wall. Kiani ran alongside them at a dead run, desperate to get to the wall and Fetch themselves across it before the guards could catch up.

Taia and Whitestar rode facing almost entirely backwards, turned in their saddles so that they could fire arrows at the fast approaching guardsmen as they ran. It seemed to take forever. They both had injuries from the fighting, some minor, some more severe; Taia was bleeding profusely from a sword cut to her thigh, Whitestar had a laceration to her abdomen. If they didn't reach safety soon, it would be too late for either of them. They continued firing at the approaching guardsmen, taking out two here, three there; finally they were at the wall. Before the horses could start to slow, Taia Fetched them across – and for a moment, at least, they were relatively safe. They took out the men who guarded the wall itself and kept riding towards the woods. They would not be able to stop until they were safely inside the woods, and even then they would rest uneasily; but for a few moments, all they had to do was run. It would take a bit of time for the guards to go out through the nearest gate, then find their quarry again as they receded into the forest, and catch up enough to be a threat.

They never caught up. Taia and Whitestar entered the forest and made sure they were well off the trail before they stopped. They dismounted; the horses all had injuries as well, a few lacerations to their forequarters and arrows embedded in the hind. Taia had acquired an arrow to the left thigh in addition to the sword gash in the right; she was only able to dismount in a semi-controlled fall. Whitestar dismounted with a bit more decorum and made her way to her mate. She stopped the bleeding on Taia's thigh, but did not close the wound; she had a limited amount of energy, and needed to do at least some Healing on both of them, as well as the horses, before she ran out. The birds arrived, Jyus with the results of his hunting. Whitestar Healed her own abdominal wound so that it was no longer life-threatening, then stopped the bleeding on the rest of her injuries. She quickly cleaned and spitted the rabbits – they would only need two, not three – and instead of building a fire, which would only attract the guard, she used the warming spell they used on their tents to cook them. They would not taste nearly as good, but they would be nourishment nonetheless.

When she was finished, Taia Fetched the arrow out of her own leg while Whitestar stopped the bleeding in its wake; they repeated this with all of the arrows embedded in the horses, and Whitestar Healed and stitched the remaining lacerations on both themselves and the horses. It would be a long night, and Sera would keep watch until first light; but the mission had been a success, and they were safe.

"Poor Juren," said Taia.

"Yes," said Whitestar. "He fought well, but that guardsman got a lucky shot. I will miss him, and he was so young…..but why did you get caught up in his death but I did not?"

"I'm not sure," said Taia. "I think perhaps because I was using magic against Melles, and you were not; perhaps it left me open to the projection of his Gift."

"I guess," said Whitestar.

"I could feel Lyesa, too," said Taia. "I could feel her loss and her emptiness when the bond was broken."

"A foreshadowing of our own deaths, I suppose," said Whitestar. "One of us will feel that someday when the other dies."

"I never want to feel it again," said Taia. "But I will, to save you from it."

"Let's hope we don't have to worry about it, either of us, for a long time," said Whitestar.

"I'm going to hope that we die at exactly the same time so neither of us has to feel it at all," said Taia. "In any case, Juren was far from being necessary to this mission because of his Gift; it turns out he was more of a hindrance than even his absence would have been."

"False thoughts," said Whitestar. "Melles was feeding him false thoughts. That is not something anyone could have foreseen, in all fairness. Had he been slightly less paranoid, or slightly less intelligent it may very well have turned out as Selenay had planned. And if the mission had failed, they would have needed that information immediately; it wasn't strictly for the mission's success that he was sent."

"That is true," said Taia. "And it hardly matters now. We have succeeded, although poor Juren will never get his Whites. In any case, let us sleep. We have a long road to travel yet, and none of it safe. And a lot of Healing to do, as well."

"Goodnight, my love," said Whitestar. "Sleep well."


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter nineteen**

They both slept, but fitfully. Sera woke them at first light; she was exhausted, and had more than earned her rest. Ryki took over the watch; neither Taia or Whitestar was Healed enough to ride unless it were a dire emergency. Syen flew back to the palace, to watch from the height an eagle could soar; a long way out of arrow distance, but the precision of view necessary for a hunter. Whitestar joined her mind to that of her bird so that they could get an idea of what the Empire was doing about the assassination; it appeared that there was quite a bit of activity, but no one was making any move toward them. Not yet, anyway. There was a lot of running around and assembly of gear; it was entirely possible they were taking their time and gathering their tracking and hunting equipment. It was also entirely possible that they already knew where Whitestar and Taia were hiding and were just taking their time on getting there. It was impossible to tell; all they could say for sure was that there was no immediate threat.

Whitestar withdrew. There was plenty of work to be done where they were. She spent time Healing Taia's legs; the arrow wound was a quick job. It had only hit muscle, which was painful and made walking difficult but was not serious. The sword gash, on the other hand, had severed the artery. Taia's own tiny Healing Gift had been the only reason she hadn't bled to death before they stopped; she didn't even have enough of a Gift to consciously use it, but it would keep her alive until Whitestar, with her powerful Healing Gift, could take over. She Healed her own abdominal wound as well, and then she was out of energy. Taia herself was still drained from the day before, so Whitestar was unable to borrow; so they spent the rest of the day resting and regaining their strength. Whitestar examined the horses again and Healed what she could. They could be ridden in an emergency, she supposed, but they really shouldn't be for another couple of days; not that it mattered. She could ride, if she had to, but Taia could not. And she would not leave her lifebonded. If they were found and attacked, either they fought and died together, or they fought and lived together.

But that didn't need to happen today. Taia Fetched the rest of their gear to where they were; they had decided, when they were Healed enough to travel, that they would not take a direct route. That would be predictable; and if the Empire hadn't yet figured out who they actually were, which was likely if Melles hadn't shared what he knew of their identities, they would assume they were Hardornen and look there. Either way, that was the direction they would be expected to go, whether they were assumed to be Hardornen or if the Empire actually knew who they were. So they would not go in that direction; as much as they wanted to get out of the Empire as quickly as possible, they would go north, first. They would stay in the forest, away from the towns and off the main roads – they might even stay off the game trails, but they hadn't yet decided. When they had determined that they were far enough north, they would begin to angle west again towards Hardorn. Taia thought it would be good to re-enter Hardorn right at the point where Hardorn was also bordered by Iftel; if they were supremely lucky, the Empire might think they had entered Iftel, and not Hardorn at all. Only a fool would try to attack Iftel; it was guarded by Vykaendis Sunlord Himself, with an impenetrable shield.

"I think I have learned my lesson," said Taia.

"And what lesson is that?" asked Whitestar.

"No matter what mission I am going on, I will not go anywhere without my armor and my warbow," said Taia. "Imagine what a difference that would have made."

"We wouldn't just be hanging around here waiting for our wounds to heal, for one," said Whitestar.

"And with the bow, I may very well have made that initial shot," said Taia. "And even if I hadn't, we would have been able to take down the guard from a distance."

"And Juren might be alive," said Whitestar.

"Yes," said Taia. "His death is on my hands. If I had planned better, he'd be sitting here with us right now."

"So every battle you planned when we were mercenaries, everyone who died in those battles is on your hands?" asked Whitestar.

"Well, sometimes," said Taia. "If I planned the battle poorly, then yes."

"Did you plan each battle to the best of your ability, with the best knowledge you had available at the time?" asked Whitestar.

"Of course," said Taia. "I may have had bad information, or I suppose someone else may have made a better plan, but it was always the very best plan I could make."

"Did you plan this mission to the best of your ability, with the best knowledge you had available at the time?" Whitestar asked.

"Yes," said Taia. "I was basing my decisions on assassinations I have done in the past, which turned out to not be relevant information to this mission at all, but I couldn't have known that when I decided what to pack."

"Then if the lives of those soldiers in those battles are not on your hands, then how is Juren's?" asked Whitestar.

Taia couldn't fault her logic. But she still felt responsible.

"And if you had gone at this assassination the way you did all the others, and snuck into the Palace – he may very well have killed you, and then we'd be dead and Juren would be the one alive, if he could have managed to escape," said Whitestar.

"I suppose," said Taia. "I still feel responsible, though."

"And you would be a lesser woman if you didn't," said Whitestar. "I feel responsible, too. But feeling responsible and being responsible are not the same thing."

"That's true," said Taia. "As much trouble as he could be, I'll miss him. And I'll miss the Herald he would have been."

"He would have made an excellent Herald," agreed Whitestar. "And Rosie would have been lucky to have him!"

"Oh, Goddess!" said Taia. "That will make a wonderful story to tell. But not his family, Kerowyn. And Talia, they will love that story!"

"Yes they will," said Whitestar. "I think his family should hear about him learning to cook."

"Yes," said Taia. "Definitely."

"Did we just agree that we were going to go and find them, and report this ourselves?" asked Whitestar.

"I think we did," said Taia. "That is always the hardest thing about leading a military, notifying the families of their loved one's death. Doing it in person is likely going to be harder."

"They'll get notification from the Heraldic Circle before we even get home," said Whitestar.

"That's true," said Taia. "But telling them the details will be harder."

"I suppose, but maybe they won't want to hear the details," Whitestar said. "I'm not sure I would."

"Me either," said Taia. "How does my leg look, Healer-mine?"

"It's not infected," said Whitestar. "I think in another day or two, we'll be able to ride out of here."

"Good," said Taia. "I'm not terribly comfortable staying here, it's only a matter of time before they find us."

"Syen says there is a small band of scouts looking, but so far they've stuck to the road. And not one leading directly towards us. But you're right, we need to get out of here soon," said Whitestar.

"Should we use different illusions?" asked Taia. "What do you think? I mean, I was enjoying wearing my own face, but at the same time I don't want to necessarily be recognizable."

"They're looking for an elderly couple, I think," said Whitestar. "Melles saw through the illusions but that doesn't mean he told anyone, and it certainly doesn't mean anyone else did. I think we're as safe as we can be with our own faces."

"Are you sure we aren't an elderly couple?" asked Taia. "I mean, we've got four decades under our belts, it's a little old to be traipsing around out here!"

"Oh Goddess," said Whitestar. "And I am feeling every one of those years, myself, but we aren't elderly yet!"

"In any case, I'd like to find a way to leave in the morning. I'm not comfortable staying here for another whole day," said Taia.

"Me neither, but your leg can't handle riding yet," said Whitestar.

"Not astride, no, but what if I ride sidesaddle?" said Taia.

"Well, we wouldn't get very far that way, and I'm not sure the horses are up to it either," said Whitestar.

"You're probably right. We'll just have to hope our luck holds out," said Taia.

"So far on this mission, we haven't had any luck other than surviving. I suppose we're due for some," said Whitestar.

"Considering the mission itself, I'd say surviving counts as pretty significant luck," said Taia.

"That is probably true," agreed Whitestar. "But I can Heal you and the horses enough that we should be able to leave the following morning."

"Good," said Taia. "I should have enough energy tomorrow to help supply you, as well. I hadn't planned on being this drained."

"None of our plans ended up helping out much," said Whitestar. "I wonder if we're slipping or if there was just no real way to plan it better."

"Not sure," said Taia. "But I'm not real proud of myself on it, either way."

"I think we're being too hard on ourselves," said Whitestar. "The mission always was dangerous to the point of near impossibility, and we pulled it off. Juren died, yes, and that's terrible, and it took longer than we had hoped; but all-out war was not declared, and Melles is dead. The Empire is in chaos. He had not named an heir, and it will take some time for them to figure out who is next in line. We have bought Hardorn time to build their army, and Valdemar time to provide adequate support. The mission was successful."

"If I'm not hard on myself, who will be?" asked Taia.

"Plenty of people," said Whitestar. "Selenay, Kerowyn, Firesong…basically everyone. They've seen us pull off miracles so often they expect them. So let's give ourselves the respite we've earned, at least from ourselves!"

The day was long and tense, but uneventful. Both Taia and Whitestar were unable to do much; Taia was entirely unable to walk, and Whitestar didn't have much stamina to go far. They were dependent on the birds not only to provide them with meat for their meals but also to keep watch for danger. Taia wasn't sure what they'd do if danger arose, since neither of them had the ability for physical defense and neither had the mage energy for magical defense; the birds would have had to provide that, as well. Whitestar might have been able to provide some of her own defense, but Taia couldn't even stand without taking the time to do so on one leg, and that one still sore from the arrow wound. The horses would fight as well but were also injured. They were well hidden, but if they were found they didn't stand a chance.

The next day passed similarly; tense, but uneventful. Whitestar focused on Healing Taia's leg to the point where she could ride safely; it would be quite painful, but it wouldn't do any actual damage. She then focused on Healing the horses completely, so that they would be able to leave the next morning. She used Taia's energy for this, since Taia was recovered at least magically from the battle with Melles; and as it turned out, she finished not a moment too soon. They were awakened just before dawn with Sera's alarm that their trackers were within a candlemark of discovery; they loaded their saddlebags onto the horses as quickly as possible and took off through the woods, as quickly and as quietly as they could. They evaded discovery, but only just. They kept moving as long as Taia could tolerate it, which was nowhere near as long as she would have liked; however, they appeared to be out of the immediate range of the search party, if only for the night.

Whitestar spent the evening Healing their wounds to make the next day's travel less uncomfortable; it appeared that since the scouting units had picked up their trail, they would be traveling during the day and hiding by night, using the warming spell to cook whatever Jyus caught. He was the designated hunter for the forseeable future; Syen needed to be available to help in their defense, Sera would be spending the day riding Kiani and sleeping since she was exclusively on night-watch. Ryki was the day-watch, monitoring their backtrail and making sure they remained ahead of their trackers; he also monitored the path ahead of them, to make sure they weren't ambushed. This involved a lot of flying back and forth on his part, and by nightfall he was too exhausted to help hunt; Syen could help, but only after they stopped for the night.

Sera again woke them before dawn, warning them of their impending discovery. They rode almost aimlessly until dusk, Sera again sleeping on Kiani, Ryki monitoring the scouts, Syen being available for defense and Jyus hunting; this was going to be a long trip home. They didn't even try to travel in any particular direction – first, they were well and soundly lost. They were not traveling by any roads, but staying in the woods, and away from even the game trails. They knew they were going generally north, a little bit west; but exactly how far, they weren't sure. Taia was concerned that they would not be able to lose their attackers before they reached the border. They could hardly call the mission a success if they led the enemy straight into where they had come from; but they couldn't stay in the Empire, either, and the only other country in their path was Iftel. They could not go there, either; the god-made shield would not allow them to pass.

The mission may have been a success, in that Melles was dead and war was no longer imminent; however, their survival was by no means guaranteed. They may not be able to get back to Hardorn without leading their enemy there, and they would not enter if they had not lost their trackers. Taia wondered if they would live the rest of their lives like this, cold-camping in the Empire north woods. She rather hoped not.


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter twenty**

"I would give just about anything for a charred bite of rabbit for dinner," said Taia.

They had been riding through the Empire north woods for a fortnight, staying one or two candlemarks ahead of their pursuers. They didn't dare light an actual fire to cook their meat, instead using their warming spell to cook it; they seasoned it the same, but the flavor was just not as good. The flavor from the roasting spell was as if they had boiled it, rather than smoked it; it tasted drowned, bland. Taia would have happily taken even a burnt rabbit instead of that.

If only Juren were there to burn it for her.

She still felt terribly guilty that Juren hadn't survived. She knew it wasn't really her fault, she knew that part of every mission includes a risk that one or all members of the group might not survive; but Juren was a kid. He had no experience. She should have made more of an effort to train him, she should have Gated him back to Haven as many times as it took to get Selenay to keep him there, she should have…but it was no use. Juren was still dead, and she had not been able to prevent it. Whether it had been a failing of ability on her part, focus, or just a failure of the mission itself was, when it was all said and done, irrelevant. Taia and Whitestar were alive, and Juren was not, and if she failed to focus on the task at hand then not even that much would be true anymore. They were barely a candlemark ahead of their pursuers, and it was a tenuous candlemark at that; the weather had not been in their favor. They should have been able to predict it; the heat of the day of the assassination was oppressive enough that rain had to follow, and sure enough it did.

Shin'a'in bred or not, their horses were having a hard time keeping the advantage in the mud resulting from that rain. Their injuries, while Healed, had still taken a lot of energy; the energy to Heal an animal or a person still came from within them, not from some nebulous source. And their horses, while able to survive and perform for longer periods on nothing but grass than the average saddle-bred, were depleted. They not only had had to heal from their wounds but unlike the horses of their pursuers, who stayed in nearby inns or commandeered the home of a local farmer, theirs did not have the supplement of grains and oats in the evenings. They would have to either make a stand at some point or succeed in losing their pursuers; otherwise, their horses would be too depleted to be of much service. Taia decided that the situation was dire enough that she needed to do something; she needed grain. She needed oats. The horses needed proper nutrition, or else they would start to deteriorate; and then, not only would they suffer a slow and painful death, but so would Taia and Whitestar.

She was going to have to steal their food.

She was not at all comfortable with this. She had worked as an assassin, yes, and there was a certain degree of dishonesty about that; but at the same time, every leader lived with the knowledge that someone, somewhere, might try to kill them. It didn't really make her feel any better, but it was somewhat of a justification. Everyone she had ever assassinated had either been a horrid, despicable excuse of a person or had been Melles – not comparatively worse than other leaders in his own country, but the fact of his existence risked the nations of Hardorn and Valdemar. His assassination had been tactical, not moral, which Taia had some qualms with but like Juren, it was done. The stealing of food for her horses? So that they could survive for some time longer at the completion of their mission? She couldn't find anything moral about that.

Except that the Shin'a'in referred to their horses as jel'sutho'edrin. Younger sibs. Their care had to come before her own, even her own moral well-being. So she spent one evening using Farsight to find an appropriate inn – she decided that if she were going to steal, she was at least going to find someone who could afford to absorb a loss – and Fetched a decent supply of oats, barley and other grains for the horses. She drew the line at Fetching the delicious-looking beef stew, the thick buttered bread and the fruit pies for herself and Whitestar; which made the warming-spell rabbit they were eating that night all the more distasteful.

"Do you think we're making any progress at all?" asked Whitestar.

"No," said Taia. "I wish I could say we were, but I can't. They're little more than a candlemark behind us. I am surprised, actually, that they haven't tried to ambush us at night."

"I was hoping I'd be wrong," said Whitestar. "I don't think they're trying to catch us. If they were, they could have done it by now, and many times over. I think they're trying to follow us to whomever sent us, and then they will declare war."

"Sheka," said Taia. "You're right, I know you're right. I was hoping I was wrong, too. We have got to do something to lose them, or we will spend the rest of our lives eating these blasted tasteless rabbits and wandering around this forest."

"I've only got one idea, but I don't know how well it will work," said Whitestar.

"What? At this point, I'll try almost anything short of an all out frontal assault," said Taia.

"We need to find out how much mage Gift is in their search party," said Whitestar. "We know they have some, but I haven't yet been able to determine how strong they are. We may be able to defeat them with magic."

"Great," said Taia. "We attack the mage with mage Gift, the rest of them attack us with swords. We need a better plan."

"I know," said Whitestar. "I didn't say it was a perfect plan. I'd just Gate home, but by the time we had it set they'd catch up with us. And probably make it through before we managed to dismiss it."

"Wait," said Taia. "Maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing."

"What?!" said Whitestar. "You want to deliberately Gate into Haven and let the enemy follow us?!"

"Haven has soldiers," said Taia. "And Heralds. We don't. We're just two."

"I'm also not entirely sure we can Gate all the way to Haven," said Whitestar. "But we could Gate into Hardorn. Tremane also has soldiers."

"But no Mindspeech. We can't warn him of our arrival, for one, and for two, his soldiers are largely Empire expatriots. Do we really want to ask them to fight their former comrades?" asked Taia.

"They would have had to anyway, in the event of a war," said Whitestar. "But you're right, I don't really want to be the one to put them into that position, and his lack of Mindspeech is a problem."

"I think we can Gate to Haven," said Taia. "We won't be worth anything when we fall through it, but it's not any farther than from the Plains, and we've done that."

"But on a time crunch?" said Whitestar. "I don't know if we can reliably build the Gate, fall through it – and either close the thing, or have Haven's soldiers ready to take out the enemy before they catch us. On this side of it. And if we're working on building it, we won't have anything available to defend ourselves. We'll be sitting ducks."

:You'll be nesting rabbits.: said Sera.

:?: sent Taia.

:Nesting rabbits. Easy to catch. Easier than ducks. Can't fly.: said Sera, in an annoyed tone as if she were explaining to a very stupid child.

Taia laughed out loud. She conveyed what Sera had said to Whitestar, who also began laughing.

"Leave it to a raptor," she said.

:We guard your backs while you build Gate.: said Sera.

:Yes, of course, but…..: said Taia.

:But nothing. Want go home. Want warm cushy perch. Want sleep all day, not ride.: said Sera.

"Sera wants to go home," said Taia.

"So do I," said Whitestar wryly. "But wanting to go home and being actually able to go home are not the same thing."

"True," said Taia. "But she says, they will guard our backs while we build the Gate. We would at least have warning that they were within attacking distance and be able to abort or hurry up and finish it."

"But say we're halfway done building it and we abort," said Whitestar. "And their mage attacks, and we don't have the strength to defend ourselves?"

"I don't think we'll ever have a scenario that leaves us risk free," said Taia. "But I don't want to spend the rest of my life wandering around these woods hiding."

"Me neither," said Whitestar. "And I do think it's the best plan we have available to us. I just want to make sure we've planned for every contingency we can think of."

"Because no matter how many we come up with, it will be the one we miss that will kill us," said Taia.

"That's true," said Whitestar. "But that doesn't mean we shouldn't plan for as many as we can."

"If only I hadn't left the warbow at home," said Taia. "Or at least that I had brought a few real arrows. I could pick off at least some of them from a distance."

"But you did leave it at home, and for what we thought were good reasons at a time," said Whitestar. "So let's make a plan. We're not building this Gate tomorrow."

"Definitely not," said Taia. "So tomorrow, when we stop to camp, I will use Farsight and Magesight to determine exactly how strong their mages are. You will use your Farsight to scout for an appropriate place to make the Gate, and make our stand should it come to that. Ok?"

"Sounds good," said Whitestar. They passed a bit of time not sleeping, and then got some much-needed rest. The next day, or the day after that, would not be an easy one.

In the morning, they left before dawn. They had to leave earlier and earlier to keep their one-candelmark lead on their pursuers. The horses had had a bit of decent nutrition, finally, so they were able to make a bit better time than they had on previous days. The weather was, for once, also cooperative; instead of trudging through a downpour and mud, now they were just trudging through the mud by itself. At least it wasn't cold; Taia didn't need to use a warming spell to keep her joints active. Instead, it was sweltering hot, and the sun shone through a completely cloudless day. The heat was somewhat tempered by the fact that they were riding through a forest, and not out on a road, but the trees here had a maddening effect of trapping the humidity at ground level. Which made it slightly more miserable, actually, than trudging through the rain; at least the rain kept them cooled off. But it was easier on the horses, which meant they were able to increase their lead to about two candlemarks.

That evening, after they had made camp and seen to the horses' comfort, Ryki, Syen and Jyus took to their rest in the tree canopy while Sera took up her duty of keeping watch. She flew back and forth between their camp and that of their pursuers, while also scouting a reasonable distance around the camp in other directions to make sure no one was approaching from another direction. She ate the rabbit Jyus had provided for her and caught a few mice for herself along the way; she used a lot of energy scouting all night long. She took pride in the fact that her owl sight enabled her to provide able security and safety for her family, but she didn't enjoy the solitude; she was quite used to having the voices of the other three birds in her head as well as the presence of an awake Taia. Even Whitestar was a distant presence in her mind. But she was the only member of the strange family who could provide this essential service, and she did it well and with complete focus.

Taia used her Farsight and Magesight combined to take a critical look at their pursuers; it was important to know not only how many there were, but how many had any hint of mage Gift, and if they did, how strong they were. Journeymen could be nearly dismissed out of hand; while it was certainly not impossible for a Journeyman to defeat an Adept, particularly in a post-mage storm world without nodes, it was unlikely. Journeymen were still entirely limited to the power within themselves, and while that was now true for Masters and most Adepts, it was not true for Taia or Whitestar. They could use each other's energy as well as ambient energy and even energy from their birds. She found, to her dismay, that not only were there no Journeymen, but there were several Masters and two Adepts. She couldn't say for sure that they were not, as she was, able to utilize ambient energy, but considering their luck so far, she felt it was safest to assume they could. Sheka. Not only would they likely sense the Gate energy, but should they manage to catch up and interrupt, they were likely to defeat Taia and Whitestar in a mage battle.

To say nothing of the physical one.

Whitestar found a suitable place to build their Gate, as well as make their stand for a battle should one prove necessary, although she shared Taia's doubt that such a battle would prove to be successful for them. Two fighters, however talented, plus three battle-trained horses and four bondbirds – one of them not battle-tested – against their pursuers, a group of a dozen military members with mage abilities was not a gamble she was willing to take of her own free volition. However, she found a place that would give them their best chance; there was a steep hill about two days out with a small clearing before it. It would prevent the pursuers from surrounding them, and force them to have to deal with Taia and Whitestar in the style that suited the women, not the pursuers, facing in opposite directions and rotating in circles to guard each other's back. Taia was still working on how Kiani would fit into that style, seeing as she was riderless; but she thought if they started out positioned in a sort of triangle, it would likely assure Kiani's death but help the rest of the group. She hated to have to almost certainly sacrifice a really good horse, but didn't think they could do without what help Kiani could provide in a pitched battle.

They made the plan to set themselves in that formation when they reached that location and set themselves to arrive there just before dawn in two days' time. Now all they would have to do is contact Kerowyn and let her know what was happening, so that she would have the army ready on the other side of the Gate. The night after they scouted the site, when they had one more day to recover from the effort of this communication, that is what she did. Taia settled in the tent and put herself into a trance; Whitestar kept watch for magical intervention, while Sera watched for physical.

:Kerowyn.: Taia began when she located her friend.

:Taia!: said Kerowyn. :We've been worried sick! We heard the bell toll for Juren, and we assumed the worst. The army has been marching to the Hardornen border ever since.:

:That explains why you are not in Haven, which is a problem.: said Taia. :Melles is dead; the mission was not a total failure. But we are being pursued through the north Empire woods, and have no way to escape other than a Gate.:

:So why don't you build one?: said Kerowyn.

:Our pursuers are only a two candlemarks behind us.: said Taia. :If we build a Gate of that magnitude, if we do not end up getting attacked outright on this end of it, we are unlikely to be able to close it before the enemy follows us through.:

:So you want me to be ready with an army contingent to take them out on your arrival.: said Kerowyn. Taia was glad her friend was able to figure this out on her own; she didn't have a lot of energy left for this.

:Exactly.: said Taia. :But you're not in Haven. This poses a problem. We don't want to lead them to Hardorn at all.:

:Not to worry.: said Kerowyn. :Tell me when you're planning to arrive, and Sayvil will communicate that to Haven. There are enough troops and Heralds left in Haven to take them on.:

:They'll need mages as well.: said Taia.

:Elspeth and Darkwind are there. As well as Treyvan and Hydona; they were not happy with not being young enough to come to the battlefield, but they will be happy enough to be of service on this.:

:Alright.: said Taia. :Just before dawn. The day after tomorrow.:

:Build your Gate.: said Kerowyn. :Valdemar stands ready.:


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter twenty-one**

The next day they rose before dawn, as had been their routine, and loaded up the horses. They pushed hard to make as much progress as possible, put as much distance between themselves and their pursuers as they could; they also had to arrive at a location at least close to the spot Whitestar had chosen to build their Gate. They managed to gain an additional half-candlemark on their pursuers, but no more. Whitestar estimated that with the time it would take to prepare the Gate, the timing would be close; the Gate spanned a large distance, which required an enormous amount of power. It also required more time to build, and during that time their pursuers would likely know that they had stopped, know that they were doing something magical, and be tipped off to speed up their pursuit. If they caught up before the Gate was completed, Taia and Whitestar would be entirely unable to defend themselves; they would be dependent on the birds and the horses to keep them physically safe. The birds were formidable fighters, as were the horses; but they were no match on their own for a group of trained military troops of this size.

"I can't say as I'm looking forward to this," said Taia. "If the Gate takes even one second longer than we think it will, we won't survive long enough to complete it."

"And if we do complete it, it's possible that the contingent left behind at Haven won't be sufficient to defeat them if they follow us through," said Whitestar. "Did Kero give you any idea of exactly who would be there ready to fight?"

"Well, Treyvan and Hydona are there," said Taia. "And Darkwind and Elspeth. That should be sufficient for any mage battle that may ensue, but as far as swordfighting she didn't specify."

"That's unfortunate," said Whitestar. "I'm nervous about this. If they do not succeed, then the Empire soldiers will have had a clear view of Companion's Field to use to build a permanent Gate to the Empire. We will have brought on the destruction of Valdemar instead of its salvation."

"Well, we're being awfully morbid and hopeless about this plan," said Taia ruefully. "I was rather hoping we could at least pretend it was going to be successful!"

"Oh, I hope it is," said Whitestar. "And it's not like I see a particularly viable option, other than continuing to run. I mean, I suppose we could just lead them to Hardorn and hope that the skirmishers would be able to take care of them with us, but that doesn't help avoid war."

"Because we'd be leading them right back to the nation we've been trying to prevent them from fighting," said Taia. "Which would render this entire mission, all our efforts, not to mention Juren's death, moot. I just wish there was an option that wasn't quite so tenuous in its likelihood to succeed."

"The Heralds are good fighters, even the ones who don't usually serve with the army," said Whitestar. "And this is a large contingent for a pursuit, but it is hardly an army. I think it's a difficult plan, a risky plan, but one we can be reasonably confident in."

"At least in comparison to our other options," said Taia. "I hate to consider that any of our friends could be killed because we were unable to escape without their aid, but at the same time, I know I would risk my life to rescue any of them."

"And turnabout is fair play, right?" joked Whitestar. "But yes. It is easy to accept making difficult and risky choices to save someone you care about. It is a different thing entirely to accept that those people might make the same choices to save you."

"And yet, that is love and friendship; accepting that someone else actually cares about you," said Taia. "It's deceptively difficult."

"Absolutely," said Whitestar. "It is difficult sometimes to accept the fact that you love me, and yet I can feel it as I feel my own love for you; it is so much harder to accept that other people do as well."

"So now we've gone from discussing the hopelessness of this mission to discussing the definition of love and friendship," said Taia. "I think it's time to officially question our sanity!"

"I think that time has long since passed," said Whitestar. "I mean, look at us, we're clearly insane! Any normal person wouldn't have even gone on this mission, let alone still be trudging through the woods eating flavorless rabbits for every meal!"

They continued riding. The weather was favorable, at least; the sun was shining, but it wasn't too hot, and there was a bit of a breeze. It was the kind of day that in other circumstances, Taia and Whitestar would have truly enjoyed a camping trip. The leisurely kind that they used to take, where they rode out to find a suitable place and then just relaxed for a day. They would eat well-seasoned, fire-roasted game that the birds had caught in a leisurely fashion and spend time just being together with no responsibilities. Today, though, Sera was sleeping while riding Kiani, Ryki was scouting their backtrail and keeping them updated on how far back their pursuers were; Syen was scouting ahead, and making sure their pursuers were not joined by any other troops while Jyus hunted for enough game to feed four hard-working raptors and the two humans. The horses were trudging along, but all three of them were growing tired of the constant push to make as much progress as possible. Taia and Whitestar themselves were growing weary of rising before dawn every day, riding all day with the constant pressure to make more progress and the threat of attack at any moment, and eating more and more meat without supplement of any other food type; they had run out of bread several days prior, and they didn't have time to search for berries or fruit. It was a drain on their physical health, as much as the lack of grains was a drain on the horses'.

They arrived at their desired campsite well after dark. They warmed their rabbits quickly and laid out their bedrolls; there was limited time before they had to leave, they didn't want to waste any time either setting up the tent or taking it down. They spelled themselves to sleep, and to wake up at the time they had set; they needed to be as rested as possible. Since they had opted to sleep without the tent, they positioned the horses in a circle around their bedrolls. Taia gave them the command to sleep in place. Sera would keep watch as usual, and awaken them should danger approach. They slept well, and woke – well, not rested, really, but as much as they could reasonably expect. They packed up the horses without saying a word; both of them were nervous and scared, and neither of them wanted to make the other more so by talking about it.

They rode quickly, silently, and carefully to their chosen site for the Gate. Sera informed them that the pursuers had awakened when they had; it was apparent that they, too, were keeping watch, by means of something like Farsight. Tremane had told them that the Empire did not utilize Mind Magic as such, but the general Gifts were still utilized in the form of magecraft. Taia sighed; she supposed she shouldn't have wasted any hope on the idea that their enemy would not notice the fact that they had left their campsite even earlier than normal. The moon was halfway between its midpoint and the horizon; they had about three candlemarks before dawn. Which would bring them to exactly the time that Taia had told Kerowyn that Valdemar should expect them.

As soon as they arrived at the chosen site for the Gate terminus, Taia and Whitestar tied themselves to their saddles. They would need to continue focusing on building the Gate even if the horses needed to begin to fight; they would not be able to spare even a moment's focus to stay in their saddles. And the minute the Gate was in place, they would need to race through it. They didn't expect to have any energy left when they arrived, and Taia was a little bit afraid that they might fall from their saddles unconscious and be trampled by any ensuing battle. She was Shin'a'in, and could hardly be seen by even Whitestar falling out of a saddle and keep her self-respect.

Kisten was fidgety and nervous; he could tell from his rider's posture that Taia was jumpy. Taia forced her muscles to relax and took some deep breaths. The horses would have to be rock solid while they built this Gate, and not shifting their weight because she or Whitestar was transmitting their fear. She could sense Whitestar taking the same measures to soothe Maleh. Taia commanded Kiani to guard, and Kisten and Maleh to stand solid and only defend if directly attacked. It was a complicated command, but she had faith in her horses' ability to follow it. Sera was still awake, but the other birds woke early, and despite not having the level of night vision the owl-eagle did, they began assisting her in scouting around. They were to watch for their pursuers' arrival or that of any other attacker and take down what they could before they reached Taia or Whitestar; Jyus took position closest to the two women in order to let the other birds know exactly when they needed to return and fly through the Gate. He was nervous, too. He had never been in a battle; he wasn't certain what they were like. But he wasn't going to let the others know that.

Taia and Whitestar took a deep breath; this was going to be difficult. Linked together, they thought they had the energy to build a Gate spanning such a large distance; but they had never done so under this pressure, and had always been at full strength, and well rested, when they had. It had never mattered how long it took to build the thing. It mattered greatly today. Too long, and they'd be slaughtered where they stood before it was up. They linked, and Taia began feeding energy to Whitestar, gathering as much ambient energy as she could; their routine had usually been the reverse. Whitestar generally fed energy to Taia, who usually built the Gate or channeled the attack. This time, however, they had decided that should they be attacked before the Gate was completed, they stood the best chance if Taia was at least minimally able to fight with sword and knife as well as feed Whitestar energy.

It seemed to take forever. As with building most Gates, it appeared that they sat still with their eyes closed, doing nothing at all; indeed, Taia was a little alarmed at how much energy she was feeding Whitestar before any sign of the Gate appeared. Unfortunately, just as the Gate began to take form, their pursuers also arrived, and began their attack. At first, they fired arrows at the women; the birds intercepted those easily, pulling them out of the sky before they had the chance to embed themselves in anyone. Syen screamed a warning at them; Taia briefly had the thought that there was nothing quite like the battlecry of a Tale'edras eagle. She wouldn't want to be on the wrong end of those talons. She was vaguely aware that Syen was beginning an actual attack, and that Sera and Ryki were not far behind; Jyus continued pulling arrows out of the air with alarming regularity.

Syen dispatched one pursuer, and Sera and Ryki wounded two others. But they were now at a gallop, making difficult targets for bondbirds. The birds wounded several of the attackers, but were unable to get a solid kill on any of them; and the Gate was up. Taia and Whitestar urged the horses through it as quickly as they could, and the birds followed – but so did their pursuers. A score of well-trained, well-equipped Empire soldiers followed them through the Gate before they could close it, and were met by the Valdemaran force that Kerowyn had left behind on the way to Hardorn.

Unfortunately, as well-trained as Heralds were and as much as their Companions aided them in battle, the best fighters of the bunch had of course been on the march to Hardorn. The field Heralds as well, had cut short their circuits and headed off to what they thought was going to be the battlefront of a war that would now not need fighting, but would have likely claimed their lives. Therefore, what was left behind to meet the Empire troops were the older Heralds; good fighters in their day, but out of practice. And not fully aware of just how good the Empire soldiers were. Treyvan and Hydona were set upon by Empire archers; half a dozen of the troops that followed Taia and Whitestar dedicated themselves to firing arrows, lit on fire, at highly flammable gryphon wings. The gryphons made a fine show for themselves, and the birds helped pull arrows out of the sky assisted by Vree – Darkwind's bird – but that effort effectively kept them out of the rest of the fray.

Elspeth and Darkwind, for their part, were taken up with the mage battle that ensued against three Empire mages who were among the group. They were successful in defeating the Empire mages, but were thus unable to assist in the physical battle taking place in the same square. Talia, Dirk, Skif and about a dozen more of the Heralds left behind were left to fight the physical battle; Selenay had left with the army to lead it. Talia had stayed behind in order to continue governing the kingdom, and provide protection and advice to Kris, who was the Heir. But all of these had battle experience, however long past, and fought ably against the Empire troops.

It was a pitched battle; the Empire troops knew well that if they could survive this initial battle, it would be relatively easy to slip into the Valdemaran countryside and stay hidden long enough to build permanent Gates back to the Empire. This would essentially mean the death of Valdemar itself, and the expansion of the Empire; Hardorn would quickly fall, sandwiched between two Empire armies. From there, the Empire would likely continue to conquer the rest of the known world. They fought hard towards this goal, and the Valdemarans fought just as hard to prevent it.

It was progressing very well. The Valdemarans were holding their own, and then they began to make progress; Elspeth and Darkwind took down the mages and were able to assist in the physical battle, although neither had the energy left to do anything more than shoot arrows. The Empire troops were falling, slowly but surely. The Valdemarans were not without injury; everyone was showing the effects of the battle, with lacerations, burns, even a few broken bones; but they fought on grimly, knowing that their entire country and way of life was at risk from these twenty Empire troops. Taia and Whitestar were numbly aware of what was going on around them, but were in such a fog from expending too much mage energy that they were unable to be of any assistance; the birds were exhausted, and Ryki was out of it entirely with a severe arrow wound to his wing. Taia was certain he would live, but not certain he would ever fly again. Even their horses had sword cuts and arrow wounds.

But the Valdemarans were winning. There were more of them standing than not, and the Empire troops were losing ground. There were only a few of them left, but they were fighting well. They had formed themselves into a circle, rotating around in much the same way that Taia and Whitestar generally did, and making quite a show for themselves. Four of them still stood, bleeding, on wounded horses but they stood, until there was only one left. Taia began to relax, and it was going to be a success; and then she heard a bloodcurdling scream.

It took her a moment to realize that the scream was not human. It was equine. She saw a white form rear on his legs and then trample the one remaining Empire soldier – and then she saw what broke her heart entirely.

Talia lay on the ground in a pool of her own blood, a sword protruding from her chest.


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter twenty-two**

They had won the battle. They had won, but at a very high price. Talia was dead; the last Empire troop had thrown his sword in desperation, determined that if he were going to fall he was at least going to take someone down with him, and it had been a lucky shot. For him, anyway; it was certainly not lucky for Talia, or any Valdemaran who had known and loved her. Which was an enormous number of Valdemarans, and no few Karsites. She had been a dear friend to both Taia and Whitestar, and both were numb with grief and guilt.

Rolan had trampled the man's remains until he was little more than a bloodstain on the field; he stood, head hanging low, sides heaving. His grief was radiating from him, and anyone nearby had to shield ferociously to remain sane. He was the one Companion, being Companion to the Monarch's Own, that survived the loss of his Chosen; he would Choose the next Monarch's Own, in order to provide additional guidance and continuity to the next generation of Valdemaran rulers. That didn't mean his grief was not as profound; the bond was no less solid for his survival. He would probably Choose the next Monarch's Own before the end of the day, because he needed to fill that void where the bond was supposed to be. Taia had no doubt it would be Lyra; Lyra would have mixed feelings. She would be ecstatic to be Chosen, finally; but Talia had been second mother to her, and would be sorely missed.

Dirk, as well, was barely conscious. In addition to his physical injuries, he and Talia had been lifebonded, as Taia and Whitestar were; the only thing keeping him from following Talia into death was his own bond with Ahrodie, his own Companion. Ahrodie was standing over him, nuzzling him and making piteous sounds, trying desperately to comfort him in his grief and yet keep him from following Talia to the shadow-world. Ahrodie was, for all that no Companion was ordinary, an ordinary Companion and would not survive the loss of her Chosen as Rolan would; she needed Dirk to stay alive and with her in order to survive, although feeling his grief and loss she wasn't entirely certain that was the best option anyway.

Taia and Whitestar, for all that they hadn't been involved in the actual battle, did not escape injury; they each had an arrow protruding from some part of their bodies as well as lacerations from various swords and knives. The Empire soldiers had tried to cut them down, seeing as they were exhausted from the Gate and helpless in their own defense; the Heralds had mostly protected them, and at least kept them from being killed, but not without injury. The horses were injured, the Companions were injured, the gryphons, the birds – there wasn't a single person that wasn't bleeding from somewhere. Talia, however, was the only one killed; thank the Goddess for small victories, Taia supposed, although she would have sacrificed nearly anyone else instead.

"I can feel Dirk's pain," said Whitestar. "I'm not able to shield it out. Oh, Gods! It's excruciating. So. Alone. I've never been so glad I'm not a Herald, I don't ever want anything keeping me from following you if you're killed."

Taia reached out and took her lifebonded's hand. She couldn't speak; she could feel both Rolan and Dirk's pain, as clearly as Whitestar could. Even had they not been drained from building the Gate, they would have had a hard time shielding against that pain; as it was, they were barely able to maintain consciousness from its bombardment. The rest of the survivors were in a similar state; injured, in pain themselves, none of them were able to remain unaffected. Tears flowed freely, the sounds of sobbing and moaning filled the field; everyone had loved Talia. Between their own grief and the grief of Rolan and Dirk, it was a cacophony of sobs.

Shortly after the battle ended, the Healers arrived. They brought with them horses and pallets to carry the wounded back to the Collegium for treatment; there was not a single person who didn't need treatment of some kind, except of course for poor Talia. Taia and Whitestar did not need to be carried, however; since they had tied themselves to Kisten and Maleh, though the horses themselves needed treatment, they were sound enough to carry them to the Collegium. One of the Healers helped poor Ryki to ride Kiani, after removing the burden of their tent and gear. An arrow had passed completely through his right wing, and broken one of the larger bones; if he did not receive expert Healing, he would never fly again. Even with expert Healing, Taia was not certain of his prognosis. Dirk was taken directly to the MindHealers; he had a few physical injuries which would require Healing, but his mind was the only thing life threatening. The only person ever known to survive the loss of a lifebonded partner had been Vanyel, and only because Yfandes had Chosen him; but Taia wondered if Vanyel would have wished she hadn't. She wasn't sure, judging from the waves of pain coming from Dirk, that he would be grateful to Ahrodie for keeping him here.

The Healers wasted no time, either, in adding to the shielding efforts of the fighters so that they were no longer bombarded by either Rolan's or Dirk's pain. They were all relieved, and also a bit guilty for that relief; but they had their own grief to cope with. Neither Dirk nor Rolan were helped by others feeling theirs. Dirk was housed in one of the Healer's rooms where the Companion was able to visit; if Dirk was going to recover, he was going to need proximity to his Companion. Ahrodie reflected in her posture the degree of torture remaining alive was to her Chosen; her coat did not shine, her tail did not flag, her head remained low. Her eyes were dim. Taia wondered if she felt it was worth it. Dirk's grief would not lessen with time; it would only become easier to bear. It would become less immediate, but no less strong. She knew she did not miss Brandi one bit less today than she had ten years ago when Brandi was killed; and Brandi had been merely a sister, although a beloved one, and not a lifebonded partner. She was grateful again that the Companions had seen fit to leave her unChosen.

Rolan, for his part, spent some time mourning Talia on the banks of the Terilee, and then took himself to the Grove where the Groveborn Companions came from; at present, only he and Gwena – Elspeth's Companion – were Groveborn. Groveborn Companions emerged fully grown from this spot, although no one but a Companion knew exactly how, and they weren't about to share that information. The rest of them were born in the same manner as other beings, through the fun and affection of their parents. Rolan stayed at the Grove for some time, alone, and what happened there only he knew; Taia suspected that there was some sort of Healing that took place there, MindHealing, in order to minimize the bond Rolan had shared with Talia, and Talamir before her, so that he could create a new one. She imagined the Healing was performed by whomever it was created the groveborn in the first place. That same evening, Rolan approached and Chose Lyra, as everyone expected he would. Lyra was, as expected, of two minds; she was ecstatic and relieved to finally have a Companion, finally be able to really be a Herald, but she grieved Talia dreadfully.

Kerowyn had turned the army back towards home after Mindspeaking Taia from the Empire. They had heard, by way of Companions, of Talia's death; Heralds were connected to one another through the net that Vanyel had created so many years ago that no one really understood anymore. The Heartstone could 'find' any Herald of Valdemar, no matter where they were, and that was how it was maintained; but the magic that Vanyel had used to create this net was not part of anyone's memory anymore. Taia had often remarked at how she would have liked to meet him; she imagined she could learn a lot from Whitestar's distant ancestor. When a Herald died, no matter where or how, the bell in the center of Companion's Field rang; the bell was once part of a chapel. The Companions would gather around it and somehow, with their magic, would make it ring. Because of the net, Heralds all over Valdemar – and even in other nations, should that be where they were – would know, and know who, had passed. They were a giant family, really, and that's how they felt about each other; they had all left family and title behind when they were Chosen, and built a new one amongst each other. They were a close bunch, even the ones who didn't really know each other; only a Herald understood exactly what it meant to be a Herald.

And so Kerowyn, Selenay, Daren and all the other Heralds who had traveled to fight with the army knew instantly that a Herald had been killed, and that Herald had been their beloved Talia. All of Haven reverberatd in grief. When Taia had recovered enough to do so, she prepared herself to Mindspeak Kerowyn.

:Kero.: she said when she found her friend.

:Hello, Taia.: said Kerowyn. :We are glad you and Whitestar were able to return. We are even more glad that the Empire soldiers were defeated. Still.:

:Yes.: said Taia. :Talia. I wish it had been me, instead. I am devastated that she was killed defending me.:

:Nonsense.: said Kerowyn. :She was killed defending Valdemar, as all of us risk in every battle we engage in. It is our duty. Still, I understand how you feel. If I had stayed behind, instead of leading the army, it might have been me instead. Or if I had left more fighters in Haven, it might have been no one.:

:And if you had done that, and we had not killed Melles, which you believed to be true when you left, then war would have broken out with the Empire and we would all be dead.: said Taia. :And with me gone, there is no one else as capable of leading the army as yourself.:

:That is true.: said Kerowyn. :There are so many what ifs. We make the best decisions we can with the information we have available at the time, and we just have to live with the consequences of them.:

:And no battleplan ever survives first engagement with the enemy.: said Taia, quoting a Shin'a'in proverb they both knew well. :So even if you plan for those consequences and mitigate them, you'll end up with different ones.:

:Exactly.: said Kerowyn. :And then we'd just be mourning someone else.:

:Still.: said Taia.

:Yes.: said Kerowyn. :Still.:

Every battle Taia had ever fought, and Kerowyn too for that matter, had resulted in the deaths of people they had known and cared for, sometimes deeply. She remembered Jareth, the captain of the Fire Eagles when she had first joined the troupe. He had been a father figure to her, of a sort; she had been devastated when he died. She remembered the first time she had had to order her troupe into a battle knowing that many of them would not return; she remembered having to order soldiers under her command to perform missions that they both knew they would not return from. It was always a hard thing to reconcile afterwards; guilt, regret, and yet relief that it had been someone else, and not her. Despite the fact that she would give her life for any number of causes, she also knew that she was not the ideal candidate to send on every mission, and also that for some of them if she were the one killed it would result in more deaths and more suffering than if she sacrificed someone else. And still.

It took a fortnight for the army to return to Haven. Ordinarily, a return to Haven after battle, and even more so after avoiding one, there would be celebrations, feasts, and joyful reunions; this, however, was a somber affair. Everyone had known and loved Talia, from the lowliest page to the highest ranked officer. She was a powerful Empath, and had taken it as her duty not only to provide comfort and counsel to the Queen, as the Monarch's Own Herald was supposed to do, but was there to comfort anyone in Haven who was projecting distress of any kind. She had been there to support every citizen in the Palace grounds at one time or another, for homesickness in the new recruits or newly Chosen to the loss of a spouse or even a child. She would be sorely missed and remembered by all.

Selenay called a council meeting the day after everyone had assembled; it was not unexpected, but the reason for it was.

"I have called you all here today to inform you that as soon as Kris and Lyra are granted their Whites, I shall be stepping down from the Crown," she announced. There was a degree of shock around the table as everyone shared their surprise and concern. "I have been your Queen for many years, and I have served to the best of my ability. However, my advisor and my friend Talia, is gone; the monarch is, by design of our government, supposed to be served by the Monarch's Own Herald, a position which will soon be filled by my daughter, Lyra. I am very proud of her, and I know she will do a wonderful job of advising her brother, of whom I am also very proud. But advisor is not an appropriate role for a daughter to perform for her own mother. And so, I will use the remaining time in their Heraldic training to prepare my son for the Crown, and as soon as he is able, I will be stepping down in his favor."

Taia could not say she was terrifically surprised. Selenay was getting old, besides; she was a good twenty years older than Taia was, and while she was still vibrant and capable, a ruler needed to be able to travel with the army should they be going to war. Selenay had done this only because it was necessary; but the trip had been wearing for her. And she was right; it would not be fitting for Lyra to serve as Queen's Own to her own mother. The Queen's Own Herald had to provide counsel to the monarch, be their confidante in all matters, and tell the monarch when she was behaving poorly or ruling inappropriately; it was a difficult role to fill anyway, but for a daughter to do that for a mother was not appropriate. And so Kris would rule, with his twin as his King's Own. They had provided a natural foil for each other since the moment of their birth, and so these roles would be perfect.

The funeral for Talia was held in Companion's Field. It was the only place large enough to hold all the people who wanted to attend, including all the Companions themselves. The field had been decorated with white and blue ribbon, and Taia and Whitestar provided blue and white magelights to light the paths as well as to decorate the space. It was a truly beautiful sight; the gardeners had worked day and night to trim the grass to perfection as well as place flowers throughout the field to further decorate it. There was a choir to sing. The kitchens had worked to provide all of Talia's favorite foods to serve. Every part of Haven had contributed their work to make the service memorable and an honor to the woman they had all loved. Dirk was standing at the front, leaning heavily on Ahrodie for support, with his and Talia's son Jemmie with them. Dirk was a shadow of himself, gaunt, with shadows under his eyes and hardly a word to say, and those in a whisper; he would never again be the man he was. Taia wondered if he truly lived at all.

Karal, the Karsite Sunpriest and the representative of Karse, performed the service; Talia had also been a Sunpriest in her own right. It was a beautiful, and lengthy, service; anyone who knew her was allowed to speak should they so wish, and many people did. This was also planned for; the service had begun just after dusk and lasted well past midnight. Still, no one was eager to leave. They scattered Talia's ashes across all of Haven, and there was not a dry eye in the city; indeed, there was not a dry eye in all of Velgarth among any who had known her.


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter twenty-three**

Life in Haven, in Valdemar, in Velgarth proceeded. Dirk was a poor shadow of himself; he spoke in little more than a whisper, he walked the halls as if he wasn't entirely present. Taia supposed part of him wasn't; part of him had died with Talia. Lyra said that she was overjoyed to have been Chosen, but the fact that Talia had had to die in order for it to happen was something she was having a hard time coping with; Talia had been second mother to her, and she mourned deeply. Selenay continued to serve as Queen, as Kris was not yet ready for his Whites; he and Lyra both needed their field training, and that was a bit of a dilemma. They were both ready for such a test, but field training for the Heir was always complicated; it was not common that a Herald trainee was killed during his training circuit, but it did happen. If something happened to Kris, Lyra could inherit; if something happened to both of them, there was still Elspeth. However, neither of those options was ideal, for obvious reasons.

It was debated daily in Council what to do about their field year, and both twins were growing impatient. Kris, as Heir, sat in on most of the meetings so that he would be experienced in governance by the time he took over from his mother; he was increasingly frustrated at having his future put on hold by a bunch of nobles who had never had anything stand in the way of their own inheritance. But then, none of them had ever been in line to hold such responsibility, either; they ruled over small regions of Valdemar, in accordance with the laws of the country itself. Kris would be responsible for decreeing those laws as well as defense and support of the entire realm. He had the Council for advice and ideas, of course; but in the end, he would assume the blame for all of their decisions. He was impatient to learn as much as he could to be prepared for that responsibility.

The arguments against his going on field circuit were many. Elspeth had not, in fact, gone on field circuit; when she was preparing for her Whites, she judged circuit courts in Haven instead of field disputes. But that had been before Kris or Lyra were born; there was no "spare" Heir. He was too young, they argued; but he wasn't any younger than Elspeth when she had been granted her Whites, and indeed not much younger than Selenay had been when she had assumed the throne. The realm had just suffered an enormous loss in Talia's death, they were not prepared for another one; but that was not a real argument, just an excuse. The conclusion was that they would have a compromise; they would be allowed to go on field circuit, but only if they traveled with bodyguards.

Taia did not like the sound of that.

She and Whitestar had only just recovered from the injuries sustained in the battle that killed Talia; Ryki was still not able to fly. He could get himself from floor to perch, but he could not fly any sort of distance. It was not certain whether or not he ever would; the major bone in his wing had been broken by the arrow passing through it, and raptor bones were notoriously difficult to Heal properly. They were also thoroughly enjoying their feather beds and warm rooms; it would be winter soon, and Taia in no way was excited about the prospect of a field circuit taking place over winter, even if she was allowed to sleep in inns and waystations and not a tent – most of the time. She argued vociferously that there was absolutely no need for the twins to have a bodyguard other than their Herald advisors and their own Companions; she had trained them well, and they were able fighters. She then argued that if they needed bodyguards, they would be better served by younger and more agile fighters; but it was no use. The council argued back that despite Taia and Whitestar's advancing age, they were not only able fighters and bodyguards but mages and Whitestar a Healer, which made them ideal for the mission. In addition, they would be able to ride Shin'a'in horses, which while they were certainly not a match for Companions, were far superior to any beast that the average guardsman could ride; Taia even offered to equip the appropriate guardsmen with Shin'a'in horses, but the Council was not having it.

Taia and Whitestar would be bodyguards to the twins, or they would not be allowed to complete a field circuit. Sheka.

The group would leave Haven to begin the circuit in one moon; that would be just at the beginning of winter. At least they would get it out of the way in the beginning and complete the rest of the year in relative comfort. Couriers had brought their winter gear back from the guardpost in Hardorn, so at least they didn't have to go and re-make all of their winter clothing. Since Taia would have to bring an additional horse for Ryki, she negotiated also the inclusion of an official packhorse; if she was going to be making this trip, she was going to do so with as much comfort as she could possibly manage. They would not be riding the same horses they took to the Empire; they had all been injured in the battle that killed Juren as well as the one that killed Talia, so while they were Healed, they had earned their retirement. Instead, she would ride Tikien, a red-black stallion of Syrx line, and Whitestar would ride Ileh, a deep brown mare out of Ishim's; they would also take Mian and Ren, a paint and cream-colored pair as the packhorse and Ryki's mount. Both were from Ixien; Ren, the cream-colored mare, was the last offspring of Mina, the mare Brandi had given Taia so long ago. Mian was the last colt out of Lys.

"Do you ever wish we were decrepit enough that they couldn't send us on these missions?" asked Taia.

"Every time they decide to send us on one," answered Whitestar.

"I'm seriously considering finding a way to strap a feather bed to Mian's back," joked Taia. "I mean, what's the point of a packhorse if we can't take a feather bed?"

"Alright, Juren," joked Whitestar. "If you can figure out a way to do it, I'll be happy enough to sleep on it!"

"I don't think I want to take the time or the effort to roll it up that tight every morning," said Taia.

"We could always spell it rolled up," said Whitestar. "I mean, don't you think you could Fetch it tight enough?"

"Hmm," said Taia. "Let me try."

She Fetched the feather bed into a roll as tight as it would go, but it was not small enough that she felt comfortable packing it on her horse along with everything else. But they did decide they could pack a few extra feather blankets. And pillows. Something more comfortable than just a bedroll, anyway.

"Well, at least it will be a more comfortable trip than the previous one," said Whitestar.

"Yes," said Taia. "Ren can carry two perches, one for Sera and one for Ryki; Mian can be packhorse. That means Tikien and Ileh won't have to carry much more than ourselves and our weapons; that will make it a more comfortable trip for them, too."

"Spoiled," said Whitestar. "We're all of us spoiled."

"In comparison to our mercenary days, yes," agreed Taia. "But I think we've earned it."

"We've definitely earned it," agreed Whitestar.

They were going out to one of their favorite inns for dinner with Kerowyn and Eldan, Elspeth and Darkwind that night. Taia was looking forward to an evening with old friends, no responsibilities, and just good food and good ale.

"So when do you guys get to retire?" asked Taia. "Because I'm wondering what I have to do to earn mine."

Kerowyn laughed.

"Be glad you're not a Herald, they don't retire until they die," she said.

"And sometimes not even then – just ask Vanyel," said Elspeth. Everyone knew how Vanyel's spirit had, with the help of the spirits of Stefen and Yfandes, guarded Valdemar from the Forest of Sorrows for generations. They trio had even had a part in stopping the Mage Storms. Taia found it mind-boggling; Whitestar was just jealous that Elspeth and Firesong had been able to meet the spirit of their long-dead common ancestor and she hadn't.

"I may as well be a Herald," said Taia. "I do all the same things, just without the white horse."

"Sayvil says that's true," said Kerowyn. "So logically, since you're Companion-free, you'll never retire because you'll never finish the work on your own!"

They all laughed.

"Well then sign me up for one of those things, I want to retire!" said Whitestar.

"It's an option, you know," Taia said.

"What?" said Elspeth. "How do you know? The Companions never share their reasons for why they do or do not Choose someone!"

"They do if you're me, and you ask, and refuse to leave without an answer," said Taia. Elspeth was dumbfounded. "Oh, alright, I was more polite that time than I usually am when I bespeak a Companion, but I asked, and I received an answer."

"You can bespeak Companions?" asked Eldan.

"Wait, you do this often?" said Elspeth. Darkwind just smirked.

"You didn't think all the Companions were as queenly as Gwena, did you darling?" he asked.

"Yes, I can bespeak anyone I choose, and Companions are 'someones'," Taia began. "It's harder than someone with Mindspeech, obviously, and harder still than a person without the Gift, but I can do it. No, I do not do it often, only when necessary; I've only done it a few times, actually. Once, the first time I came to Valdemar as a mercenary in the war against Ancar – I didn't know I wasn't supposed to be able to, so I didn't think about it – they were all staring at me. I found it rude and disturbing; I'd already been tolerating those vrondii, the shield was still up then – and I wasn't going to tolerate it from a bunch of white horses who are supposed to know how to behave. So I bespoke the herd and told them to knock it off."

Elspeth nearly choked. Darkwind laughed, Eldan was nearly apoplectic; Kerowyn, however, just looked remarkably satisfied.

"The second time, I went to the Field and politely asked if one of them would be willing to answer a few questions I had; I wanted to know why neither of us had been Chosen. I wanted to know if I'd been deluding myself all these years thinking I was a good person. Rolan answered my questions."

"What did he say?"said Elspeth.

"He said that between Whitestar and myself, we already had quite a few bonds and responsibilities we hadn't signed up for and they were trying to be considerate and not add one more; but that we could, if we wanted to, be Chosen at any time," Taia answered.

"That sounds like something Rolan would say," said Eldan. "Thoughtful, dignified. Definitely Rolan."

"I needed to talk to Lyesa, Juren's Companion, before the Empire mission to…ask her a few things when I was having trouble teaching him shielding," Taia said. "I basically bombarded the herd with every random thought that came into my head until she came over to talk to me."

"That sounds like something you would do," said Kerowyn.

"Yup," said Taia. "I was mad. She had kept information from me that was critical to his progress and I wanted to know why. I also had to talk to her during the trip about pulling a wagon."

"Oh Goddess, the wagon!" said Whitestar. "I'd almost forgotten about the wagon!"

Taia and Whitestar told the rest of the group all about building a wagon with Mage Gift and what a disaster it was. By the time they were finished, all six of them had tears rolling down their faces from laughing so hard.

"And then…..and then…" gasped Taia, "we finally dragged that thing into town, you should have seen the look on the sheriff's face!"

"He was trying so hard not to laugh!" said Whitestar.

"I told him he could use it for firewood," said Taia. "He was trying so hard to be dignified about it, not show how ridiculous that thing looked –"

"We laughed until we couldn't breathe as soon as we left the town," said Whitestar. "And I'm pretty sure I could hear him from a good two candlemarks out!"

"I bet you could!" said Darkwind. "But that is a whole new use for mage Gift, I bet Firesong would love it!"

"Oh, he would, it could start a whole new art medium in the Vales," said Whitestar. "But I don't think we should let Taia demonstrate!"

At the end of the evening, they were all a bit dizzy from the ale, full from the food and warm from the fire. They were refreshed from spending the evening relaxing with good friends that were more like family. Taia considered these moments the reason for living at all; all the struggle, all the fighting, all the work and the danger and the politics – it was all worth it, to sit here in an in laughing with friends like these. In other years, Talia and Dirk may have joined them; and Taia was sure they had, in spirit. They returned to the Collegium and slept, secure in their purpose, supported by their friends and prepared for the journey to come.


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter twenty-four**

It was the first mission Taia or Whitestar had ever been on that didn't leave before dawn, but they still left at the break of it. Taia made sure Ryki was secure on his perch while Whitestar finished loading up Mian and they were off. Heralds Riek and Liana, and their Companions Jekyr and Kyli, led the group; it was an unusually large group for a field circuit. It was strange enough that there were two trainees together, each with their own mentor; even stranger that they were accompanied by two non-Heraldic bodyguards on Shin'a'in mounts with bondbirds and packhorses.

"Rolan tells me there has only ever been a training circuit like this one other time," said Lyra. "With a Herald named Mags, and another King's Own named Amily, way back in the beginning of Valdemar."

"That's interesting," said Taia. "I'd like to know the circumstances around that."

"We should have asked Myste," said Kris. "She knows all the histories. And she loves telling people about them."

:I wonder how Rolan knows about it.: Whitestar said to Taia.

:Well, Lyra says it was another King's Own that was in that group.: Taia replied. :I imagine Rolan was the Companion.:

:That's ridiculous, they don't live that long!: said Whitestar.

:No they don't, but the Companions themselves are the spirits of ex-Heralds, mostly.: Taia said. :And of course it wasn't THIS incarnation that was Companion to this Amily person, I mean Taver was Companion to Talamir before he was killed; but I imagine they come back more than once. How else to have enough wisdom and experience to guide the Monarch's Own, who advises the monarch?:

:Excellent point.: said Whitestar. :I wonder how much the Heralds know of who, exactly, they bond with.:

:My guess is nothing at all.: said Taia.

Rolan turned his head just enough to look Taia in the eye, and gave a slight but definite nod in her direction; Taia was not surprised that he knew exactly what she and Whitestar were talking about, despite their conversation being in Mindspeech and therefore not supposed to be prey to eavesdropping. There was no way to really know exactly what the Companions were capable of; particularly Rolan. It was a little bit disturbing, but not anything she could do anything about. Still.

:Do you listen in on all my conversations or just the ones about you? And how do you know, without listening in in the first place?: she thought at Rolan, in a teasing voice; she wasn't actually angry with him.

:I have my ways of knowing when people are talking about me or my kind, without eavesdropping on your other conversations, I assure you.: he replied. :And I only eavesdrop when it concerns me. I'll thank you, though, to not share your observations with my Chosen.:

:Not a peep.: Taia reassured Rolan. :Although at some point if they do talk to Myste, they will likely note the Companion of the same name.:

:I have my ways of having them…..not.: Rolan replied with a twinkle in his 'voice'.

They arrived at the main gate to the city after winding through its streets; Haven was a maze. The city itself was designed so that an invasion would have a hard time making its way to the Palace; there were no streets that led there in a straight line. Anyone trying to find it needed to know their way; this meant that in the event of an invasion, the army or the guard would have more time to either eliminate the threat before it arrived at the Palace, or construct sufficient defense. However it also meant that even for people who knew their way around, getting out of the city took more time. By the time they arrived at the open road even the Companions were restless for a run. No horse could keep up with a Companion in full gallop, Shin'a'in or no; but the bondbirds could. So the Companions took off at a gallop and Syen, Sera and Jyus kept watch from above; Ryki was jealous, but there was nothing to be done. Taia and Whitestar urged their horses to a gallop as well, and they were able to keep within sight of the Companions – but not more than just sight. Had there been an ambush waiting for their charges, they may have been able to hit them with arrows or magic but other than that, the birds would have to hold them off until Taia and Whitestar arrived physically. An ambush this close to Haven was extremely unlikely, but not impossible, so the women weren't terribly worried – but they were vigilant and paid close attention to their charges.

Nothing happened, however; they expended their excess energy and Taia and Whitestar caught up to the Companions.

"That was fun," said Lyra. "It isn't often we get to do that inside Haven; it's different on the road from Companion's Field."

"That was fun," said Kris. "You guys kept up fairly well, too." He said to Taia and Whitestar.

"Shin'a'in horses are no match for Companions, but they've got more stamina than most, and I picked these mounts in part for their speed; they're the fastest in my herd," said Taia. "I thought that as long as we were going on a field circuit with Heralds and Companions, I should pick horses that were at least better at keeping up than the rest."

"But they're still battle-trained, right?" asked Lyra. "I mean, not that I expect to need it, but at the same time…."

"Of course," said Taia. "I battle-train all my horses, and I spent the last month giving this bunch extra training besides."

"Good," said Kris. "I don't expect to need it either, and of course we trust the two of you to be prepared for anything, but I'm glad."

"Look," said Riek. "I don't mean to be a killjoy, and I know you four know each other and you're friends and all, but I think it might be best if Taia and Whitestar hang back a bit. I'm concerned that our trainees here need to learn how to be Heralds; while I know the two of you are excellent teachers and wonderful people, you're not Heralds. I just want to make sure these two get the best possible training."

"What Riek is trying to say is we want them to have as normal a field training as possible, and that doesn't usually include bodyguards," said Liana. "He was afraid to say it outright, since he remembers weapons' training with Taia; I, however, am too old to have experienced it."

Taia laughed. "Good thing, too, Liana!" she teased.

"Absolutely, Riek, you are quite right," said Whitestar. "You four ride up ahead, we will be perfecty happy a horselength or two behind; the horses will probably appreciate it too!"

Kris and Lyra looked sheepishly at Taia and moved up with Riek and Liana as they were beckoned to do; Taia and Whitestar fell back. Syen and Jyus flew scout patterns around them, keeping watch for an ambush outside of the humans' range of vision; Sera had taken to her perch to sleep until dusk, when she would go hunt for the group. They rode along chatting, enjoying their relatively leisurely pace, with no urgency; the circuit had a planned route, and a schedule to keep, but it was nowhere near as rushed as Taia and Whitestar were accustomed to. Other than having to keep constant vigilance, it was almost like a vacation. The circuit would take them north, along the border; that was where the greatest danger would be. The chance of anything happening between here and there was slim, but not nonexistent.

The first night, they spent at a waystation; there was only enough room inside for the four Heralds, and barely that; they were really only designed for two, but they bunked together and shared the beds. Taia and Whitestar used their tent; it would be better for keeping watch against attackers anyway. Sera kept watch, of course; she had awakened at dusk and brought down a deer for the group. It was enough meat for all six humans and the four birds, with enough left over for breakfast; Whitestar offered to cook for the group, but Liana insisted that the trainees needed to learn field cooking. That was true enough, Whitestar supposed; so she and Taia took their portion of the meat and enjoyed a far superior meal than their charges.

"So I know when we got back to Haven we were a bit caught up with healing from our injuries and mourning Talia," said Whitestar. "What did the Council have to say about the reaction in the Empire?"

"They're in chaos, apparently," Taia replied. "Their Emperor usually lives to be hundreds of years old; he prolongs his life with magic. The Emperor also usually has several candidates he pits against each other towards the end of his reign; Tremane told me that his original foray into Hardorn was his final test to take Charliss' place."

"And Melles had only been reigning for a decade," said Whitestar. "Plus he was suspicious; he wouldn't want challengers to his throne hanging around until he absolutely needed them."

"Exactly. So there aren't any real possibilities for successor," said Taia. "They're all fighting it out, and it's quite likely the Empire itself will break up and go back to being the nations that existed before they were made part of the Empire in the first place."

"But what about us, did they trace us?" asked Whitestar.

"They made a token effort," said Taia. "The only soldiers that chased us from the Palace grounds followed us into the Gate to Valdemar, and we know how that ended up. The rest of the Empire had no way of knowing where we had fled to; they knew where their comrades had gone right up until the Gate, but they had no way of knowing where the Gate led. So they were left trying to pick up our trail the 'old fashioned' way."

"And we did a good job of muddying that up," said Whitestar.

"Yes we did," agreed Taia. "They started tracing us to Hardorn but then someone thought the trail to Karse was solid and another thought Rethwellan…..they decided that there was no way to know for sure, it seems, and no way to garner support for an external war when they had so much internal turmoil."

"Good thing," said Whitestar. "I'd hate to think we did it for nothing, or that we got caught and the war started anyway. Juren and Talia's deaths have to count for something."

"I agree," said Taia. "Plus it's a matter of professional pride; it's bad enough we had to Gate back to a waiting army to rescue us!"

"Absolutely!" laughed Whitestar. "We are the notorious warrior mages, famous, infamous, and everything in between, we can't fail to accomplish our mission!"

They spent a few more candlemarks not sleeping, and then finally slept. They left early in the morning, but not before dawn; still, Taia and Whitestar were sleepy from their late evening, and so they took turns sleeping in the saddle until they were both fully awake. The circuit was mostly uneventful; they went from town to town, where the trainees did their duty reading the new laws, judging disputes, and the Companions did their tour of entertaining children – and sometimes the not-so-children. There was hardly a soul in Valdemar that hadn't at one point or another dreamed of becoming a Herald; and there was something about Companions that brought out the dreamy child in everyone, whether they were an actual child or a grey-haired oldster. The Companions were well-used to the attention and were gracious towards all.

The twins showed every bit of their royal upbringing and the wisdom imparted by their mother; they gave excellent judgments and listened well to their mentors when they made mistakes or had questions. Selenay would be proud, Taia thought; and Kris would make an excellent ruler. He listened to every complaint brought to his attention as if it were the most important issue of the realm and made fair judgments with the assuredness and strength a monarch required. Lyra, for her part, showed an excellent ability to be compassionate, rather than decisive, when listening to complainants; she pronounced judgments occasionally, and did so with fairness and wisdom, but more often she provided comfort and a listening ear to anyone who had need of it. While they each needed to train to be a full Herald and be able to make judgments, their training also needed to reflect the positions they were destined to hold when they received their Whites. Kris would be the monarch; he needed as much practice as he could get making judgments and pronouncements while he could still rely on senior Heralds to correct him or offer guidance. Lyra would be King's Own; she needed practice offering advice and a listening ear, as well as criticism where it was due.

They spent a little over a moon riding circuit along the Hardornen border, where they did encounter the occasional bandit gang; normally, no one in Valdemar would dare attack Heralds and Companions, particularly a group containing four of them. However, while there had not been an actual war with the Empire, the constant skirmishing over the past few years had destabilized Hardorn somewhat. This left more room for bandits both within Hardorn itself as well as those attempting to cross into Valdemar. Sometimes these bandits had left Hardorn fully intending to find a better life but had run into hardship; sometimes they were prone to banditry regardless. Either way, Taia and Whitestar dispatched of them before they could dispatch their charges, binding up the survivors and delivering them to the nearest guardpost as was their habit. Kris and Lyra defended themselves ably; they needed the practice, so they were allowed to participate in the fight, but both the senior Heralds as well as their bodyguards made certain they were never at real risk of bodily harm.

They knew for a fact that Selenay was an able fighter, as was her husband Daren, and they all wanted to live.

The field circuit progressed more or less uneventfully until they arrived at a small town on the border of Valdemar and Hardorn, on the northern edge, almost far enough north to be bordering Iftel instead. Neither Taia nor Whitestar would have ever guessed that this town would be the challenge that it turned out to be, and neither of them quite knew how to deal with it. Particularly since it didn't actually have anything to do with them; they weren't the Heralds in training.


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter twenty-five**

It wasn't that Taia hadn't encountered anyone with rape trauma since her experience with Mornelithe Falconsbane. Of course she had; she was a captain of a mercenary troupe for years following that horror, and one of the things female mercenaries or soldiers have to deal with is that if they are captured, they will likely be raped. She had even encountered rape victims in Valdemar, but both in the mercenary camp and in Haven; the Healers had been the ones exposed to their trauma directly while Taia had kept her distance. Sometimes she had felt horribly guilty for it; she felt that her experience as well as her Empathy Gift could be of use to at least make the girl feel less alone, but she could never quite bring herself to try. She had no desire whatsoever to have to look at that experience again and remember it. She was reminded every time she saw her own scars; she didn't want to reopen them. They had taken a long time and been very painfully healed.

So when the group arrived in Brighthold, a small town on the edge of Valdemar, she was shocked to be bombarded with the raw pain of a recently assaulted young girl, obviously Gifted and equally obviously unshielded. It seemed that the Gift had been awakened by her trauma, which made it all the more violent. Not only was the poor child suffering from her own wounds, both mental and physical, but she was subject to all the thoughts and feelings of every townmember present; and no few of them blamed her for her own experience. The entire town, as well, was victim to her projected pain and trauma, and it was in chaos. People were sobbing uncontrollably without knowing why, other people were fighting – sometimes physically – with similar lack of understanding. Taia gasped and went white; her shields were solid, but there was no shielding against what this poor girl was unwittingly projecting. She couldn't help being shocked right back to her own trauma, and it took everything she had to clamp her own shields tight enough to function and remain sane.

Whitestar, who could feel everything Taia felt through the lifebond as well as feeling the projection for herself, had a different reaction. Where Taia became nearly catatonic, Whitestar was angry. Not at the poor girl projecting, she couldn't help it; she was in pain, and had a brand new Gift she didn't know was there and didn't know how to control. She was furious at the man – men, it seemed – who had done this to her. She clamped down on her own shields as Taia had done, but was better able to function; she reached out with her own Gifts and found the girl's mind and shielded it as tightly as she could. All four Heralds looked at her with gratitude; they had all been victim to the poor girl's projections as well, but the trainees didn't have the experience to react quickly and the mentors didn't have the ability. Whitestar wondered briefly why the Companions had not stepped in, but decided they likely wanted to see how their Chosen would handle the situation. Whitestar could appreciate that, but she was not going to allow Taia to be bombarded with that kind of trauma so that Kris and Lyra could learn something,

"Riek, Liana – Kris and Lyra should be safe enough without us for a few candlemarks at least inside that town. Taia and I are going to set up camp out here. I have scanned the area and I don't sense any hostility towards them at all; the birds will keep watch and we can be there within seconds if we are needed," Whitestar said.

Riek looked annoyed and Liana opened her mouth to say something; Lyra, however, got the blank expression of someone communicating with her Companion – and then waved the senior Heralds off. She appeared to be Mindspeaking Liana, and sure enough Liana closed her mouth and blanched; she nodded at Whitestar and glanced at Taia, who was barely holding herself together, and dragged Riek along with them into the town. Whitestar was briefly annoyed at Rolan, who had apparently shared Taia's business; she knew how much Taia valued her privacy about her experience with Falconsbane. However, that couldn't be helped right now; neither of them were going to be able to fulfill their duties within that town for the next few candlemarks at least, and their charges deserved to know why.

Whitestar put up their tent and set the warming spell; it was just bitterly cold at night, and with the effort she and Taia were going to be using to keep sane, they would need the extra heat. She helped Taia off of her horse and got her settled inside, then started a fire for when the birds brought her something to cook over it. She unsaddled the horses and brushed them down; they would have ordinarily gotten grain in the inn, had they been able to stay in town, but they would have to settle for just grass tonight. Tomorrow, even if Taia wasn't able to go into town, she would head in if only to get some oats for them. By the time she had the horses settled, Sera dropped in with a wild pig for her to cook; Whitestar was glad for that, she was getting tired of rabbit and squirrel. Ryki still couldn't hunt for himself, so the pig would feed both women and Ryki as well; Whitestar skinned it, dressed it and spitted it over the fire to cook with some of the travel herbs she had brought with them. Then she went in to check on her lifebonded.

Taia was curled up on her bedroll staring at the wall; Ryki was trying to comfort her, preening at her hair and making chortling sounds at her.

"How are you doing?" Whitestar asked, curling up next to her.

"I'm angry with myself for falling apart," said Taia.

"Don't be," said Whitestar. "It's completely understandable that this would hit you hard, it's hit all of us hard, and we don't have your experience."

"I have shields," said Taia. "I have good shields. I should be able to shield that out and get on with my job."

"None of our shields were strong enough to keep that out initially," said Whitestar. "Why would they have been? We weren't expecting it. If we had been, we would have increased our shields to compensate, and then you may very well have been able to function. But neither one of us is Gifted with reliable Foresight, so that isn't something we could have expected of ourselves. Stop guilting yourself."

"I can't help it," said Taia. "I'm supposed to be over it, I mean it happened two decades ago! And you MindHealed me! Even without warning, I should be able to handle it."

"Why, because you're super-Taia?" said Whitestar. "You're not, you know. You're just Taia. You're a great warrior, you're a great mage, you're a great teacher – but you're still only human, just like the rest of us. And just like the rest of us, some things hit you harder than others. Some things hit me harder than others; you know severe burns are not something I can deal with. We all have our issues, and this one is yours. It's understandable."

"If you say so," said Taia.

"I say so," said Whitestar. "Now sit up, I'm going to get us some meat for dinner, the pig is done."

Whitestar got up and went out to serve up dinner, only to find Liana standing there with Kyli, her Companion.

"Hello," said Whitestar. "Sorry about this, we should be able to at least come into town tomorrow. We will probably keep camping out here at night, though."

"Don't worry about that," said Liana. "That's not why I'm here. I came for two reasons, first to see how you were doing."

"She'll be alright," said Whitestar. "I'd appreciate your discretion, however; it's not something she likes to have as public knowledge. Only a few people in Haven know about it, actually; Selenay, Elspeth, Kerowyn and Talia were the only ones who knew. Lyra must have been told by Rolan, and while we understand why she had to tell you, if we can keep it from going any further, we'd appreciate it."

"I had to tell Riek, but I did tell him an abbreviated version," said Liana. "I couldn't say for sure whether or not Lyra told Kris; but I'll make sure it doesn't get any further. Ever."

"Thank you," said Whitestar. "And the other thing?"

"I was hoping you had some ability for MindHealing," said Liana. "The girl is in desperate need, and there isn't a MindHealer for days. I hate to ask, but…"

"But she needs it, and the state of my lifebonded aside I am the only person capable of it," said Whitestar. "Yes, I have some MindHealing ability; I am by no means the best, but I won't do her any harm. I will come tomorrow morning. Taia will either be able to come with me or she'll be alright out here."

"Thank you," said Liana. "Lyra has some Empathy, along with her Mindspeech; Kris is not at all Gifted in that way, he has Mindspeech and a bit of Foresight. Riek and I are both Mindspeakers, and I have a bit of Fetching and he a bit of Farsight; all of us can 'hear' her projections, but our shields are wearing thin. I know you're keeping her shielded, and the Companions are as well, but – "

"But it is a temporary solution at best," said Whitestar. "And we will eventually all of us run out of energy to do so, and have made no progress in helping the girl. I will do what I can; at the very least, I should be able to get her to stop projecting quite so much."

"Good," said Liana. "Please…give Taia our best, I'm not really sure what to say that might be helpful, but we will be thinking of her. I brought you some ale, too, to go with your pig."

"Thank you," said Whitestar, taking the skin full of ale. "I will let her know you stopped by."

Liana mounted Kyli, who looked Whitestar in the eye and gave a little bow. Whitestar nodded in return and the Herald and Companion turned and went back to the town. Whitestar finished preparing dinner for herself, Taia and Ryki – who wanted mostly innards anyway, thank the goddess for raptors who would enjoy that mess – and went back inside the tent.

"I heard most of that," Taia said. She was sitting up and looked better than when Whitestar had first left the tent; Whitestar was glad, but not surprised. Despite being hit hard by this event, Taia was tough as nails.

"I figured you would," said Whitestar, handing Taia the skin full of ale. "I will leave for town just after breakfast; it is up to you whether or not you come with."

"I think I will," said Taia. "I might be able to help. Particularly when they catch the guys who did it."

"Isn't that supposed to be Kris and Lyra's job?" asked Whitestar pointedly.

"Yes, of course, as is their conviction," said Taia. "But should they need help with executing the actual punishment, they might need some assistance."

"And just how do you think you'll be able to help with that?" asked Whitestar. "You're not authorized to carry out executions."

"No, of course not," said Taia. "Don't be ridiculous. Talia told me once about a rape victim she encountered on her own training circuit. She was a powerful Empath, remember?"  
"How could I forget? I've never met an Empath with quite that much power to that single Gift," said Whitestar.

"She was creative, too; she told me that as punishment for the perpetrator, she gathered all the emotions of the victim and made the perpetrator feel them for all eternity until he realized what he had done and repented. It left him catatonic," said Taia.

"Wow," said Whitestar. "I didn't even know that was possible."

"Neither did she, and that's probably why it worked," said Taia. "No one really understands Empathy all that well; she's the only person who ever had it as a singular Gift, usually people have it in conjunction with Thoughtsensing, Healing, or at least Mindspeech. She basically did what she did because she didn't know it couldn't be done."

"And you think you can do the same?" asked Whitestar.

"I think it's worth a try," said Taia. "I'm not sure if I can or not, but I think I can, and I'm willing to try. My Empathy is not as strong a Gift as hers was, but I can augment it with MageGift."

"I can't say as I can think of a more appropriate punishment," said Whitestar. "Execution is a good second choice, but – I wish I could tell Talia how amazing she was to have done that. That is truly fitting the punishment to suit the crime!"

"Yes it is," agreed Taia. "And I'm going to try and honor her memory and repeat her performance."

They finished their meal and went to sleep; Syen and Jyus returned to the tent to sleep while Sera maintained her vigilance, both over her little family as well as the Heralds and Trainees. It wasn't likely that anything would happen to any of them, but if it did she would be able to awaken Taia and Whitestar with a thought and mount her own attack on whomever was unfortunate enough to make themselves her victim. Sera was not as big as Syen, but she could take down two to three grown men on her own before they knew what had hit them; such was the benefit of an owl's ability to fly without a sound. Also, Sera could be vicious when she wanted to be, and when she was protecting her charges, she wanted to be.

In the morning, Sera came back to the campground to rest and keep Ryki company. They would be safe, since Ryki could wake Sera in case he needed to and the two packhorses would also defend the campsite, not that Taia or Whitestar expected them to need to; this was an area fairly safe from attack. Old mercenary habits, however, died hard, and so they were used to making sure that between themselves and their winged- or four-legged companions, everyone was able to defend themselves should the need arise. Taia and Whitestar rode into town, with Syen and Jyus flying circuit between watching over them and watching over the camp; Taia was keeping a tight lock on her shields, so much so that even Whitestar was nearly shielded out. She was glad she had decided to ride Tikien instead of walking; not only would she be able to ride out at full gallop if it turned out she couldn't cope, embarrassment aside, she wasn't sure her legs would have supported her weight.

It was a pretty town; small, but big enough for an inn where the Heralds and Trainees were staying. The streets were clean and the houses well kept; they could smell the bread fresh-baked from the bakery as they passed it. There were plenty of small merchants, and farmers, even an herb-healer, albeit not one Gifted or Collegium-trained. Taia and Whitestar both knew how skilled such healers could be, however; so that was not seen as a weakness by them. There were candlemakers, soap makers, weavers and a spice shop; Whitestar planned on restocking her supplies before they left. The thatch on the buildings had been recently replaced and there were flowers in the baskets of nearly every window. Well-fed children ran playing through the street while the women did the laundry or harvested vegetables out of their backyards; it was hard to believe that this idyllic little town was where a young girl had been brutally raped by three men, or that any of these villagers had harbored thoughts that it had been her own fault.

But that is exactly what had happened, and Kris and Lyra were busy interviewing villagers to determine exactly who had done it and where the perpetrators were. Taia and Whitestar, however, were there on a different mission, so they headed over to the small house where the girl lived and knocked on the door. This was going to be a very long and very difficult day for all three of them.


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter twenty-six**

The woman who answered the door was exhausted; she had been caring for her daughter since the incident. She was a widow; her husband, the girl's father, had been killed a few years earlier in a farming accident. It had been a happy marriage, and the result of that was five children of whom the girl was the oldest. This meant that in addition to caring for a traumatized fourteen year old girl, Leisha, who frequently woke up screaming and spent a good deal of her waking moments sobbing, she had four younger children to cook and care for and clean up after, in addition to her work as one of the candlemakers for the town. Her second child, another girl of about twelve, had been doing the best she could to help with her younger siblings – a ten year old boy, a seven year old boy, and the baby of the family, a four year old girl – but she was just a child herself, really, and it was too much for her. The eldest daughter, until this happened, had done most of the housework and childcare, and was clearly not up to the task at this point.

"Hello," said Whitestar. "My name is Whitestar, and this is my lifebonded, Taia. We are here with the Heralds, and we thought that while they sort out the legal issues of what happened to your daughter, I am a Healer, and can help her to Heal. With your permission, of course."

"Oh, by the gods, thank you," said the woman, named Meli. "I've done the best I can with her, but it's nearly impossible to do alone!"

"I will help your other daughter with the housework and the child-minding, if you permit, and you can get some rest," said Taia. "It looks like you need it, if you don't mind my saying."

"Well, you don't look like you know a lot about child-rearing or housework, but I'd be grateful nonetheless!" laughed Meli.

"I assure you, I have done more of both than it appears!" Taia laughed.

"Well then, I believe I will do just that," said Meli. "I was wondering how I was going to keep my eyes open for even one more candlemark, let alone an entire day; I'll be in the hayloft, that way noise won't disturb me. Just send one of the boys to fetch me if I'm needed."

"I'm sure we'll be fine," said Whitestar. "Get some rest. Leisha will be doing better when you wake."

Meli walked out the door and headed to the hayloft to sleep; Whitestar went to the backroom, where Leisha was resting fitfully. Taia would feed Whitestar energy throughout the day, but wasn't sure she could actually handle seeing the poor girl; she knew well the look that would be in the child's eyes, and did not want to be confronted with that mirror.

"So," she began, addressing a frazzled looking girl. "You're Nesha?"

The girl nodded. "Yes," she said. "This is Par, that's Tien, and the little one is Kili. What would you like from us?"

"Well," said Taia. "First, I'm going to whip up some breakfast for you while you get washed up. The little ones, we are going to play a game where whoever gets their toys put away and their hands and faces washed first gets an extra treat! But no skimping – if you aren't clean, you get to do it again! Go!"

Nesha grinned and went to change her clothes and clean up. She hadn't had a chance to so much as brush her hair in several days; she wanted a bath, and she was going to take one. A quick one, to be sure, but a bath nonetheless. Par and Tien ran around the small house picking up their toys and helping Kili with hers – Taia was happy to see that they were a wonderful bunch of kids, caring more about each other than they did about a treat – and Taia swept the floor up quickly before washing her hands and rolling out some pastry dough. It was true that Whitestar was the better cook, but that didn't mean Taia couldn't whip up a fruit pie now and then. She found some berries and wrapped them in the pastry, made about ten of them and put them on the stove to bake while she whipped some cream and made some kava for the children to drink; then she cleaned up the kitchen while waiting for them to come back. Apparently, Nesha had decided that they all needed baths as well, so when she finished with her own she dunked her siblings. All four of them came running back to the kitchen at about the same time, just as Taia finished cleaning the kitchen and the fruit pies were done; she handed them each a cup of kava and set the pies on the table to cool.

"Good job!" she said. "And all finished at the same time, so all of you get extra cream!"

The children smiled. Taia passed around little bowls of berries that were left over from making the pies and told the children stories about childhood on the Plains while they waited for the pies to cool. When they were cool enough to eat, Taia spooned cream onto each pie and passed them out. She kept them enraptured in her stories until they finished eating, washed all of their hands and faces and then sent them outside to play. She quickly washed the dishes from breakfast and then headed outside herself to watch them play. They were playing some version of a game involving a ball, a stick and running around in a circle before the opposing side could 'tag' the runner 'out' while she cleaned a couple of pheasants Jyus had brought her for lunch. The children were busy wearing themselves out, which was exactly her goal; she wanted them so tired by the time their mother woke that they wouldn't be able to create much work for her to do. She rather enjoyed herself, much to her surprise; after spending so much of her life doing anything but domestic work, she was enjoying the opportunity to sit back and just enjoy younglings at play.

Meanwhile, Whitestar was in with Leisha. When Whitestar had first entered the room, the poor girl was sleeping, but fitfully; it was obvious that she was having nightmares of her experience. Whitestar extended her Healing Gift and sent the girl into an actual sleep, one that would be dreamless and allow her to truly rest; there hadn't been much of that. When the girl was sleeping peacefully, she began her work. She first made sure the girl was properly shielded, so that her stray emotions couldn't get in the way of anyone else's work; then she began the MindHealing. She used her own Gifts to enter the girl's mind, careful to leave anything unrelated to to the trauma safely private. She softened the 'edges' of the girl's pain and helped her mind to process it properly, so that the girl could heal and reclaim her life. It was difficult, painstaking, and painful work; the girl herself whimpered in her sleep a few times, and Whitestar found herself crying more than once.

In order to perform MindHealing, Whitestar needed to help the girl relive her experience and process it; much like any other kind of Healing it didn't skip anything that wouldn't happen on its own, it merely sped up the process through the use of Whitestar's – and Taia's – own energy. She was able to direct the girl's thoughts towards progress, rather than cycling through the same harmful thoughts repeatedly as was so common in rape cases, but that was as much as she could do. She had to see for herself, and feel for herself, everything that the girl went through in order to Heal her of her trauma; this would have been painful enough, without the memories of having done exactly the same thing for Taia so many years ago.

Finally, she had made enough progress that the girl slept peacefully without intervention. There was still more work to be done, but both Whitestar and Taia were drained; they needed to keep enough energy to keep the girl's Gift shielded, so the rest would have to wait. Whitestar rose from her seat next to the bed and nearly moaned out loud; she had lost track of time entirely, and had been sitting in the same position for several candlemarks. Taia was serving lunch, at this point; melted cheese sandwiches with vegetable soup. The pheasants were spitted and were roasting over hot coals of a fire; that would be for dinner, likely when both Meli and Leisha would wake.

"Heyla," said Taia. "Fancy seeing you here, come have some lunch. Maybe you'll want to check the pheasant after you eat, I tried to spice it how you like but you'll probably want to make some adjustments!"

"Sure, and thank you," said Whitestar. "I'm starved. Leisha is sleeping comfortably now, and won't have to be spelled into it anymore. She will probably still have some nightmares, but they will be fewer; and when she wakes, she's going to be able to get up and move about. I gather she hasn't been able to since it happened."

"Leisha hurt bad," said Kili. "Leisha cry all the time, not want to play."

"I know, sweetling," said Whitestar. "But she's going to be better soon."

"Well, she should have known better than to go down by the river on her own," said Par.

"Now just you wait a second," said Taia. "Nothing that happened to your sister is her fault. Nothing. There is nothing she could have done that would make her deserve what happened to her."

"But mama told her not to!" Par said. "Mama told her, there were strange people down there, take Nesha with! And she went anyway!"

"And if she had taken Nesha, what then?" said Taia. "You would likely have had both your sisters get hurt. She went to the river to what, get water, right? For you. And your sisters, and your brother, and your mother. Is what happened to your sister your fault, for needing water? Or your mother's? No. The only people responsible for what happened to her are the people that did it. Period."

"But mama said – " Par continued.

"Mama said the same thing Taia is telling you now, Par," said Nesha. "You're just repeating what you've heard the villagers say, and they're ignorant. They could have helped us, after Papa died, to manage the farm and the chores, but they didn't. If we're going to blame Leisha, blame them, too. If they'd helped, maybe one of them would have been fetching water, and maybe they would have been hurt. It doesn't end, and either way, no one deserves that."

"You've been feeling everything she felt for the last few days, right?" asked Taia.

"I don't know, all I know is since Leisha got hurt I've been really angry, and really sad," said Par.

"And 'shamed. Like I did something I shouldn't have, but I've been good, honest!" said Tien.

"It hurt," said Kili. "But I don't have an owie."

"Was that what was happening?" asked Nesha. "Were we feeling what she felt? That was horrible. But how was that possible, and why did it stop?"

"Good questions," said Taia. "And we'll answer them. But first, Par, those things that you felt, no matter what Leisha may have done – did she deserve that?"

Par paled, and shook his head vigorously. "No," he said quietly. "No, never."

"Good," said Taia. "Now. You have heard of Heralds having special powers, right?"

"Like being able to talk with their minds!" yelled Tien.

"Or move things," said Par.

"Is Leisha going to be a Herald?" asked Nesha.

"Maybe," said Whitestar. "We don't know, yet. But people other than Heralds have those powers – they're called Gifts. And the one Leisha has makes her able to feel what other people feel. Unfortunately, she also has the kind that lets her make other people feel what she feels."

"But why did she do that to us?" asked Nesha. "Why would she want us to feel those things, we didn't do anything wrong!"

"She didn't do it on purpose," said Whitestar. "She doesn't even know she has the Gift. It was likely awakened by the trauma of what happened to her; she doesn't know she has it, and she hasn't learned to control it yet."

"She will learn, though; we will start teaching her as soon as she's awake," said Taia.

"You have those Gifts, too?" asked Tien.

"Yes," said Taia. "And a few others. Which is why you aren't feeling her feelings anymore; we put a wall around her, called a shield, so that she can't make other people feel those feelings anymore."

"Can you make one so she doesn't have to feel them, either?" asked Nesha.

"Unfortunately, no," said Whitestar. "But one of my other Gifts is Healing, and part of that is MindHealing; I spent the morning helping her feel better."

"Good," said Par. "I'm sorry I said it was her fault. I was wrong, and no one deserves to hurt like that. Least of all Leisha."

"I know you didn't mean it," said Taia. "You were just angry that it happened at all, and it's easier to blame the person in front of you than the nameless, faceless animals that hurt her. But it's always a good thing to remember, think before you blame anyone for anything. You might be looking at the wrong person."

Par nodded, very seriously. Taia had a feeling this was a lesson he wouldn't soon forget. "Alright, you rascals, lunch is over, everyone wash your hands and outside; we're going to have horseback riding lessons!"

"Yay!" Kili cheered. Nesha tried to look less excited and more grown up than her little sister, but every girl loves horses, and she was excited too; Par and Tien were grinning, too. Whitestar laughed and went to check the pheasants while Taia cleaned up in the kitchen; just as Taia expected, she added spices and adjusted their position on the spit. Then both women grabbed a child and hauled them up on the horses' backs in front of them. They took turns with each kid in turn, walking, trotting, canter and even a gallop across a field; the children squealed with delight at that, even Nesha. Taia knew they would; she was a middle-aged adult herself, and still loved nothing more than an all-out gallop across a field. When they returned, she taught the children how to brush out the horses and let them help feed them, and by then Leisha was awake. Whitestar went to help the girl get something to eat, get bathed and dressed; Taia took a deep breath. The challenge for her had only just begun.


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter twenty-seven**

Kris and Lyra were trying hard to get solid identification of the travelers that had assaulted Leisha. Since the girl hadn't been able to testify herself yet, all they had was the hearsay and the impressions of the villagers; some of them thought it was just one person, others were adamant that it was at least a dozen. It didn't help that their testimonies were tainted by the projected emotions of a half-catatonic, traumatized girl, or that they didn't even realize that's what they were reflecting. Riek's Farsight was not strong enough to find anyone within his range that fit any description; it seemed that however many perpetrators there had been, they were long gone now. So they focused most of their energy on solving the other problems in the town, from the normal border claims, tax corrections and general arguments as well as the fights that had been started by villagers unknowingly affected by Leisha's projected rage. It was a tedious job, and neither felt like they were being successful at anything, since they couldn't actually prosecute the perpetrators of Leisha's attack.

What they could determine was that Leisha had gone to fetch water; the well was recently caved, and had not yet been repaired; so the river was their only water source. A small band of travelers had passed through the town the day before and had left in the direction of the river; no one could quite agree on how many men were in that group, and they were the suspects of Leisha's attack. Leisha had been warned by her mother to not go alone, but the girl was headstrong, and besides, she was tired of being responsible for her siblings all the time; the walk to the river and back was the only privacy she had all day, and she had been looking forward to it. It had been safe enough the day before, so she went. Some of the villagers did blame the girl for her own attack, since she did disobey her mother; Kris and Lyra disabused these villagers of this notion in similar fashion to the way Taia had with Par. They also realized that this opinion was likely part and parcel of the girl's own projection of guilt and self-blame.

The girl had been found unconscious near some bushes at the riverside by one of the neighbors who had gone himself to fetch water for his own family about three days before the Heralds' arrival; this neighbor was quickly placed under Truth Spell to verify that he had indeed only found the girl, and had not in fact been the one to hurt her. She had been violated by at least one man, as was evident from the bruising and bleeding, and the herb-healer strongly suspected more than one but couldn't be sure. She had been hit over the head as well, which accounted in part for her unconsciousness; Lyra suspected it was also in part due to the shock of her freshly and traumatically awakened Empathy Gift. She had been brought back to her home, where she had only awakened periodically in the midst of nightmares and had said very little coherently ever since. It was a frustrating case, to be sure; but now that Whitestar had MindHealed the girl enough to function, Kris thought it probable that they could at least get enough information for a coherent story, even if they weren't ever able to catch the perpetrators.

Leisha walked outside of her house and watched her siblings laugh and play under the eye of some strange looking woman with dark skin, strange clothing and tightly braided hair. Whitestar, the equally-strange looking blonde next to her who was wearing similarly strange clothing, explained to her that this was Taia, a Shin'a'in warrior. She thought she remembered hearing stories of a warrior named Taia, but couldn't believe that this woman, smiling and laughing with Kili, could possibly be this same warrior. But she figured it had to be, because she didn't know of any other Shin'a'in warrior that would be riding around with a Hawkbrother, and Whitestar had told her that's what she was. What were they doing here, and why were they bothering to help her? She was just an ordinary girl, one who was stupid enough to disobey her mother and go get herself attacked…..she felt her mind start to go down that path again of self-blame, and just as clearly felt a gentle 'block' prevent her from doing so. She wondered what that was, too.

Taia stopped playing with the younger children and Whitestar took over; the Shin'a'in looked a little bit hesitant, but walked over to where Leisha was standing with obvious determination and purpose. Was the Shin'a'in afraid of her or disgusted by her? Leisha wasn't sure, but she knew it had to be one or the other, because the woman clearly did not want to be anywhere near her. She started to go back inside and hide, but the Shin'a'in stopped her.

"Wait," said Taia. "I only want to help you. Come ride with me."

Leisha turned around and looked at the woman and started to refuse; clearly the woman didn't want to be with her and was just trying to be nice. But something in the woman's eyes stopped her – some kind of old and distant pain, but pain that Leisha recognized as the same as the kind she herself felt. So she went.

Taia was nervous; she had not, in fact, ever talked about her captivity with Falconsbane with anyone other than Whitestar and Brandi. Other people knew, of course; Kiri and Jacqui, who had been part of her rescue. Whitestar's parents, in case their help had been needed during her Healing. Kerowyn, Firesong, Elspeth, Selenay, and probably their spouses and Companions. And Talia, too, had once come to her rooms to see if there was anything she could do, having experienced something similar under Ancar. But she had not actually talked about it. She had never voluntarily told anyone. She supposed, now, that had been a mistake; maybe her Healing wasn't as complete as she thought it was, since she was so hesitant to talk about it, even to help this child. She had been incapacitated for several candlemarks when bombarded with the girl's pain; how was she to handle purposefully reopening her own actual scars? But this girl needed her help, and she would be damned to the nine hells if she let her own pain stop her from giving it.

So she helped Leisha climb up on Ileh, and she rode Tikien. Whitestar stayed behind to care for the four younger siblings, but sent a wave of love and support through the lifebond; Taia was grateful. She would need all the strength she could get. They rode out beyond the edge of the village; Taia could sense Leisha growing fearful, being away from the safety of the village.

"Don't be afraid," said Taia. "I know I don't look it, but I am fully armed and can take out a good dozen men by myself, and Ileh there won't let any harm befall you. She'll fight, and all you have to do is hold on. Besides, I am a mage, with several other Gifts; there is no one out here but the birds and the squirrels. Don't be afraid."

Leisha tried to relax, but while she knew objectively she was perfectly safe, she couldn't help being scared.

"I…..can't help it," she said. "I know these woods, I've run through them a thousand times, and I know too that what you say is true; but I can't help it. I'm afraid."

"That is the first step to conquering your fear," said Taia. "You can't be brave if you're not scared, and you can't conquer fear if you don't acknowledge that it's there. I'm afraid, too; just not of these woods. I'm about to tell you a story I have never told anyone before, and I'm not really sure how I'm going to feel afterwards; but it's a story I think you need to hear."

"You?" Leisha said. "You, afraid? Are you not the legendary Shin'a'in warrior we all hear stories about from the Bards when they come through?"

"Aye," laughed Taia. "Aye, that I am. But I am only that – only a warrior. Only a mage. I am not superhuman, and at least half of what the legends say about me is fiction. I might not be afraid of the sword, but there are things that can still make me afraid. And I can even be defeated, and have nearly been so more than once."

Leisha was shocked, but didn't say anything.

"One of those times is the story I am about to tell you," said Taia. She kept riding, keeping the horses at a slow walk, and stared straight ahead without really seeing anything. "It has been a very long time since this happened to me; I was a little bit older than you are now. I had recently been made Captain of my mercenary troupe, and we were returning after the war with Ancar, when the Queen met the King Consort and remarried. Whitestar and I had taken a detour to the Plains to visit my sister, so that she would know that we had survived the war; we hadn't expected to. We were on the very edge of the Plains, and I had gone for a walk alone one night; I must have wandered farther than I thought, and I wasn't paying attention, because the next thing I knew, I was being held captive by Mornelithe Falconsbane."

Leisha gasped. Clearly, the child had heard of the mage, even this far north, even this long after his final defeat. "How could you be captured?" she asked. "You're so powerful!"

"I am mortal, my dear, as I have said," said Taia gently. "I to this day am not sure how he managed to knock me unconscious and transport me to his stronghold, as there is no way he could have entered the Plains without the whole of the Shin'a'in tribes descending on him; but the how does not matter. It happened. I woke chained to the wall and naked, having already been beaten and raped by him and likely his entire guard."

Leisha gasped again, and then began to feel ashamed; how could she be having so much difficulty when it had only been three travelers who didn't actually injure her, when Taia had gone through that – but Taia stopped her.

"Stop, child," she said. "One is not the worse than the other. They are equal in their horridness, and you have every right to feel however you feel and take as long as you need to heal. The fact that it has happened to myself as well as other women is cause for you to feel less alone, not less in pain."

"Sorry," said Leisha.

"Now," continued Taia. "I was held there for months, and every day Falconsbane and the guards – would visit me, and visit all manner of depravity and torture on my body, because one of the ways an evil mage can make himself more powerful is by gathering the energy released by pain; also, Falconsbane was just an evil man."

Taia decided not to go into the details of exactly who Falconsbane really was; it wasn't the point of the story.

"He burned me until I didn't have any skin, he pulled out my nails one at a time, he whipped me until my muscles were flayed – and when I didn't have any more flesh to torture, he began crushing my bones, one at a time, from the inside out."

"How did you survive?" asked Leisha.

"Ironically, one of my Gifts is just enough Healing that it will keep me alive until a real Healer arrives; I can't even use it consciously, it's so weak. One of the ways Falconsbane had kept me bound was a spell that can be placed on any mage, should they be unconscious, however powerful; it keeps their Gifts from being usable, but doesn't work on Gifts so small as my Healing Gift. But I still could have ended it if I had only fallen asleep, and allowed my head to fall just so; it would have severed my spinal cord with a bone shard. But I couldn't bring myself to do it, see; I am lifebonded to Whitestar, and if I die, so does she. And no matter how hopeless it seemed, how much pain I was in, and how much I wanted to die – I couldn't bring myself to bring her with me. I love her too much."

"I wonder if anyone will ever love me," blurted Leisha. "Sorry. How did you escape?"

"I didn't," said Taia. "I was just lying there in the cell, breathing, waiting for Falconsbane to finally finish me off – there wasn't anything more he could do to me, he'd tried – and suddenly, there was my sister Brandi, and her wife Jacqui, fighting off the guards while Whitestar Healed me enough to get me out the door. I'm sure it was quite the sight; I didn't even look human, I don't believe, and I had to Fetch myself airborne and float because Healing bones as badly crushed as mine takes more energy than Whitestar had in a fortnight, even using mine as well!"

"But you don't even look scarred!" blurted Leisha.

"Don't I?" asked Taia – and she did what she had never done before, for anyone but Whitestar, and dropped the illusion. She looked directly at Leisha, with her bleached-white hair, pale blue eyes, and all the scars life had granted her. Not all were from Falconsbane, of course, but the effect was the same. She had a thick scar the length of her face, from forehead to chin, across her right eye; she had nearly lost her sight from that gash, and it was from Falconsbane. She had another similar scar across the left side of her mouth, but in all fairness she couldn't remember where that one came from, and another across that left cheekbone. Her nose had obviously been broken more than once, and scars along her neck and down her chest were also visible, as well as scars leading into her hairline. The skin that did not have scars from being slashed was scarred from burn wounds; it was obvious that much of her body covered as it was by clothing was similarly marked.

It had the desired effect; Leisha blanched and looked away.

"I think it rather obvious why I keep up an illusion to not frighten the children," said Taia, putting the illusion back in place. "But as you can see, I am quite scarred. And not just physically; I am also scarred emotionally, as you will be. There's nothing to be done for it, unfortunately; Whitestar will Heal you to the best of her ability, but you will not ever be the same. You will not react to a man's touch the way you might have, otherwise; you will have flashbacks and nightmares periodically for the rest of your days, and there will be certain things that will bring you right back to how you feel right now. But it will get better, I promise you that. You are not alone, and it was not your fault. You are damaged, but you are not damaged goods. You are ashamed, but have nothing to be ashamed of. Don't let them defeat you."

Leisha was very quiet. They both just rode for awhile, staring off into the horizon, each in her own world, each trying to make some resolutiom with the pain in their own hearts; Leisha's fresh, Taia's reopened. When they had both come to some sort of equanimity, Taia stopped Tikien, and Ileh followed suit. She looked at her young charge; both had tearstains on their faces, but neither was still crying.

"Now," Taia said. "Are you ready?"

"For what?" asked Leisha, honestly confused.

"To get justice," Taia said. "The Heralds have made no progress, since no one can piece together a solid description of even how many there were in that hateful bunch. They need your testimony."

"You mean, I'll have to go in front of the village and tell them….." said Leisha. "I don't know that I can do that."

"I'm certain that I can convince them to let your testimony be private, no more in attendance than the Heralds themselves and anyone you may wish to be present for support. But yes, you will have to give testimony, if you want justice for your attackers," said Taia.

Leisha took a deep breath, and was silent for some moments. "Yes," she said quietly. "Yes, I'm ready."


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter twenty-eight**

It was all well and good to want to get justice, and to be ready to get it. It was another thing entirely to actually get justice, when the perpetrators were unidentified, and not currently present in the town. So Whitestar, with permission from Leisha, 'looked' into the girl's memories to get a picture of what the men looked like and then passed that image to Taia. Taia used her Farsight to locate them, and then she and Whitestar rode out with the Heralds to apprehend them. They stayed distant from the Heralds, though; first, they were not authorized to arrest anyone, and second, they were only there as bodyguards to Kris and Lyra. Those two had to do the actual work. They caught up with the three perpetrators easily; between the speed of Companions, hampered only slightly by the slower Shin'a'in mounts, and the fact that the perpetrators themselves had no warning that anyone was coming for them, the four Heralds surrounded the small camp and apprehended them without incident.

They tied the mens' wrists, and then tied them to each other in a long lead and walked back to the town. Taia kept a tight leash on her shields; she didn't want any possibility of catching a stray emotion from these animals, as she was liable to burn them alive if she did. They stayed far enough behind that they were out of earshot, as well; Taia was not sure how she would handle actually having to look at them and not kill them where they stood. They returned to the town, where the Heralds placed the men in a cell and locked it. They took turns standing guard; the town did not employ a sheriff. In the very rare event that they needed to lock anyone up, it was usually for petty theft; the men of the town took turns guarding in those instances until someone could come and hear the case, or an agreement could be reached.

Taia encouraged Kris and Lyra to allow Leisha to testify privately under Truth Spell, without her attackers or the rest of the village present; the girl wanted justice, but was not looking forward to the prospect of detailing exactly what had been done to her in front of the entire village. She also was terrified of having to be questioned by the men themselves; unfortunately, that was required by law. Valdemaran law required that anyone accused of a crime had the right to question his or her accuser; the best the Heralds could offer was to have a representative for the men ask the questions, rather than allow the three of them to badger her. Since none of the villagers were willing to volunteer for this duty, Riek was saddled with the job. He needed a bath after every visit, he was so disgusted with them.

They argued that Leisha had walked provocatively towards them, not towards the river directly, and smiled suggestively at them. They argued that her tunic was pulled down over her shoulder and that they took that as invitation; after all, a girl who didn't want the attention they delivered wouldn't dress like that, wouldn't walk like that, wouldn't try to go away from town on her own. So they each took their turn with her, believing themselves justified by the way she was dressed, the way she walked, and the fact that she was alone – basically because she was female. When she fought back, they said she wasn't allowed to change her mind, nice girls didn't argue with men who thought she was pretty, she ought to be grateful for the compliment of their attention. They hit her, mostly with their fists, and held her down for their use. When they were done they hit her over the head and knocked her unconscious, leaving her to either die or wake, they didn't care. She was just a girl. She wasn't important; only their needs were important. She should have just complied; if she hadn't fought back, they wouldn't have had to hit her. They wouldn't have had to knock her unconscious.

It was a good thing, Riek decided, that they weren't even smart enough to recognize the hideousness of their argument; it would be an easy conviction, and swift justice. That didn't mean that the trial would be easy, of course; it was still going to be difficult for Leisha to get through, that was unavoidable. But as far as rape trials went, this one would be as good as anyone could hope for. Riek took two days to confer with his 'clients'; they scheduled the trial to begin the day afterwards. Kris would be judging the case while Lyra represented Leisha. Liana supervised them both, but mostly she observed; this was Kris' trial to conduct, and she would only intervene if he asked for her help.

"Kris," said Taia, the morning the trial was to begin. "Did Talia ever talk to you about her own field circuit?"

"Only…..how it ended," Kris replied. Talia's circuit had ended with the death of Kris' namesake and Talia's imprisonment and torture by Ancar; she had not expected to survive, and only did so by the sheer force of one Herald Dirk's will and the assistance of more than one Herald and Companion.

"She told me once of a rape trial she encountered along the way," said Taia. "It was a case similar to this, only it was only one perpetrator."

"Why are you telling me this?" asked Kris. He was curious, it wasn't accusatory.

"Because of the punishment she inflicted on the perpetrators," said Taia. "You recall she was a powerful Empath, both receptive and projective."

"Yes, of course, it was what made her so good at being Queen's Own," said Kris.

"And one of the things that made her such a good friend," said Taia. "She gathered the rage, the pain, and the humiliation of the victim, and she turned them around on the perpetrator, in a manner so that he would feel that, and nothing else, until he repented of his actions."

"Wow," said Kris. "I wasn't aware that such a thing was possible."

"Neither was she, which is probably why it worked," said Taia. "The man was left basically catatonic. She also was able to basically perform MindHealing on the victim, but that's not relevant to sentencing."

"It's too bad she's not here to repeat the performance," said Kris. "I would love to be able to sentence those animals to such a fate; but I am not an Empath, and while Lyra is, I don't believe her Gift is projective. At least, if it is, it isn't strong enough."

"But mine is," said Taia. "At least, I think it is. I have projective Empathy, and I believe I could do it. I'm not sure how appropriate it would be for me to do so, however; I am not a Herald. But I wanted to let you know that I am willing to attempt it, should you decide it appropriate."

"Thank you," said Kris. "I believe I will consult with Liana and Riek about that, and of course Alaran; I don't mean to insult you, but as you say you are not a Herald, and I want to get some guidance on how appropriate it would be to allow you to carry out sentencing."

"That is fine," said Taia. "I think it is most wise to seek counsel; it is hardly a standard punishment. I am at your service should you require it."

"I will let you know what we decide," said Kris.

The morning of the trial was a gloomy one, which Leisha thought fitting. She was very much dreading the trial itself; while she had been assured that the only people present would be the Heralds, the perpetrators and Taia and Whitestar at her own request, she was still dreading telling the story out loud. Whitestar had practiced with her, asking her to tell the story repeatedly until she could do so without sobbing incoherently in the middle of it; she still cried, but that was all the better. She just needed to be able to get through it.

"You survived the rape," said Whitestar. "You can survive the trial."

Leisha just hoped Whitestar was right. On the other hand, Taia had survived what had happened to her; if Taia could do it, Leisha wasn't going to give up. She walked into the town hall, now used as a courthouse, in her best clothes. Her hair was done nicely, and she walked with the closest thing to confidence she could muster. Whitestar was keeping a tight shield on the girl's Empathy Gift; they hadn't really discussed the Gift with the girl yet, it seemed better to let her deal with one issue at a time. The trial was imminent, but the Gift training was not; they could work on that afterwards. They sat down on the opposite side of the room from the perpetrators, as far away from them as possible. Kris called the trial to order, and they began.

Lyra, acting as the prosecutor, presented her case; she talked about how Leisha was a teenage girl helping her only surviving parent to care for her younger siblings, and how she had gone to the river to fetch water for the day since the well was dry. She described how the girl was found and her condition, and what the girl had said happened to her once she woke up. Then it was Riek's turn; he stood up and described Leisha's trip to the river as the perpetrators saw it – an unchaperoned girl who smiled at them, that they took to be flirting, and proceeded accordingly. He pointed out that if the men had believed themselves to have done anything wrong, they would have run; instead, they were quietly camped at about the distance one would expect of travelers over that period of time. It was not a terribly convincing defense, but they hadn't questioned any witnesses yet.

Unfortunately for Leisha, there was really only one witness to start with – herself. She walked up to the chair they directed her to, holding her hands tightly together to keep them from shaking too visibly. She was terrified; shaking from head to toe, but she sat. Lyra stood up and began to ask her questions.

"Where were you going on the day in question?" she asked. Leisha hadn't noticed, but the blue glow of the Truth Spell had surrounded her; there was a slight intake of breath in the audience, but she didn't notice that either. She was too focused on trying to keep her voice steady.

"I was going to the river, to fetch water for my family," she said. Her voice shook only a little; she was proud of herself for that.

"Why were you going by yourself?" asked Lyra.

"Who was going to go with me, my mother? She had to go to work, so we could buy food. I'm the oldest; I take care of my brothers and my sisters. I fetch the water, I clean the house, I make the food and I make sure we're all dressed and clean every day. What option was there?" asked Leisha.

"Couldn't you have asked someone from the town to go with you?" asked Lyra. She had a bit of a bone to pick with this town; it wasn't right to let a teenager take on the responsibilities of an adult, not when there were plenty of people to lend a hand.

"Why? It had always been safe before, and we were fine on our own," said Leisha, lifting her chin a bit.

"But these travelers had gone through town the day before. Isn't it true your mother warned you about them?" asked Lyra.

"Yes," said Leisha. "But no one had ever offered to help us before. They were busy, the few times I asked. So I didn't bother this time."

"Ok," said Lyra. "So what happened when you got to the river?"

"I never made it to the river," said Leisha. "Before I could get there, that man right there – " she indicated one of the perpetrators – "grabbed my arm. They said I was a pretty girl, and a pretty girl shouldn't be out walking alone."

"Then what? Tell us what happened, in your own words," said Lyra.

"The other one – " she indicated another of the perpetrators – "said that a pretty girl like me, walking by myself, I could only be looking for one thing. I tried to protest, I did! I screamed, I tried to get away, but they held me down, they beat me, they ripped my clothing off – and they took turns. When they were finished one of them said that I couldn't be left behind to tell stories and they hit me on the head with a rock, and the next thing I knew I was waking up in my own bed with Whitestar sitting next to me."

"That will be all," said Lyra. "Thank you."

Riek stood up, slowly.

"Leisha, I want you to know first, that I don't ask you these questions because I want to hurt you," he said. "It is the law in Valdemar that all accused criminals have representation, and so that responsibility has fallen on me."

It was very irregular for a defense representative to begin this way; it was a measure of just how reprehensible Riek found the perpetrators that he went ahead and said it. If it had been anyone but a Herald making such a statement, the entire defense would be thrown out, and Riek knew it. Kris did, as well, and rapped his knuckles on the counter.

"Proceed, Riek," he said. "No more delays."

"Very well," said Riek. "Leisha, this man says that you smiled at him in invitation as you walked towards them – and not towards the river. Isn't that the case?"

"No," said Leisha. "It is not. I walked towards the river; I didn't even see them until they'd surrounded me."

"Isn't it true you wore your tunic hanging off your shoulder, in order to appear more attractive?" asked Riek.

"I wasn't wearing a tunic with that wide a neck," said Leisha. "I couldn't have pulled it off my shoulder like that if I had wanted to, and I certainly didn't."

"Isn't it true that you walked down to the river by yourself that day, even though your mother warned you not to, because you were hoping to run into these men and get their attention?" Riek asked.

"No," said Leisha. "I wasn't even thinking about those men. I was thinking about my sister Kili, and how she'd gotten strawberry jam all over her clothing and it needed to be washed. I was thinking about my brothers Par and Tien, because when I'd left they were wrestling in the mud and they would need baths, and their clothes would need washing too. I was thinking about my sister Nesha, who I'd left alone in charge of the rest, and whether or not she would be able to handle it. I was thinking about my mother, off to work before dawn, trying to make enough money to feed and clothe all of us. I was thinking about my father, dead these last three years, and if he weren't I'd be able to go to school like I'm supposed to, and maybe making something of myself instead of here exhausted taking care of my siblings as if I were their mother. I wasn't thinking of those men."

"That is all," said Riek.

The blue glow never wavered.

Lyra asked the townspeople a few questions about how they found Leisha and in what condition. Riek asked them whether or not Leisha had a reputation for being 'provocative'. They roundly denied that, and seemed somewhat ashamed that they had not, in fact, offered to help the family with their chores following the father's death. Lyra was a bit satisfied at that development. Then it was time to question the perpetrators. Liana made sure the Truth Spell was on them good and tight, and they began with the first.

"She smiled at us," the first one said. The blue glow vanished.

"She pulled her tunic down real low, like," the second one said. The blue glow vanished.

"She wanted the attention," said the third. The blue glow vanished.

Liana applied the second stage Truth Spell, so that now they would be forced to tell the truth, and not just make it obvious when they lied. And at this point, they all three were finished. They all fought it, but eventually they admitted to having raped Leisha for the sole purpose of their own satisfaction, and even enjoyed the fact that she fought them. They admitted to having hit her with the rock and leaving her for dead. They never thought anyone would catch up to them; and they were nearly correct. While an ordinary search party likely wouldn't have been able to, since they would have been riding ponies in this area against their horses, they were no match for Companions, or even Shin'a'in horses. Taia was fairly certain that they wouldn't have escaped the Ashkevron line, either, but that was a point neither here nor there.

It was time for the sentencing. Taia and Whitestar sat silently; Taia wasn't really sure what she wanted Kris to announce. Typically, the men in question would be executed. That would certainly be appropriate, she thought, but at the same time, Talia's punishment was…more so. It fit the crime. And if their characters ever improved to the point where they could recognize their crime and be sorry for it, they would have the chance to rehabilitate themselves, rather than just a quick and relatively painless death. And if they didn't, they would suffer the pain and the rage and the helpless humiliation that Leisha had felt; only while she would get better, they would not. It would never entirely go away for Leisha either; Taia was fully aware of that. But it would get better, for her. She also wasn't sure whether or not she could accomplish what Talia had; Talia's Empathy Gift was stronger than Taia's, and Talia had only been dealing with one man. And she had done what she hadn't even known was possible, which strangely enough had the tendency to allow someone to be more successful than they might otherwise be. And she had done so before her own experience with Ancar; so she wasn't dealing with her own shadows, either.

She wasn't really sure what she wanted Kris to announce.


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter twenty-nine**

"Ordinarily, the sentence for a crime of this nature in Valdemar is execution," began Kris. Taia felt a knot start to form in her gut. "However, we have precedent for a different kind of punishment."

The hall was absolutely silent. The other three Heralds were standing somewhat unnaturally still; there was a great deal of tension in the air. Leisha looked terrified and about to cry; her mother was almost indignant with anger at what she thought was about to be an easy sentence. The town was confused and mumbling to each other, and the perpetrators were looking hopeful; Taia was rather amused, thinking that if they knew what really awaited them, they would hope for execution. Finally, Kris cleared his throat for silence, and received it.

"Many of you have heard of the late Herald Talia, but what most of you do not know is that she had a very powerful Gift of Empathy," said Kris. He did not mention that Rolan had recently revealed to Lyra that Leisha's Gift was nearly as strong. "She once encountered a situation similar to this, when she was on her own field circuit."

A murmur started to ripple through the crowd, but quickly quieted.

"She used her Gift to cause the perpetrator of that crime to feel, himself, every bit of pain and fear and rage that his victim had, as if it were his own," said Kris. There were a few gasps, and a few voices of approval. "She made it so that if the perpetrator of that crime were truly repentant of his actions, he could be released from these feelings; but as long as he remained unrepentant, he would continue in that state."

Leisha blanched, a bit; she knew exactly how she had felt, and wasn't sure she would wish it on anyone. Still, execution was rather final; this way, the men had an opportunity for redemption. She wasn't entirely certain which was the right path.

"We have someone present who is capable of administering that type of justice," said Kris. "She is not a Herald; but she is a friend to us all. Taia shena Pretera'sedrin k'Treva sits in this hall; many of you have heard of her, as well. She is able and willing to administer this justice, in lieu of execution, should the town wish it. In the event of choosing this option, the prisoners will be transported to the nearest guardpost for housing and care; should they recover, they will be put on a work crew until such a time as they prove themselves worthy of release or until they perish of whatever befalls them."

The town erupted in conversation; many thought that this alternative to execution was a more appropriate punishment, because it would torture the criminals until such a time that they were worthy of rehabilitation. Just as many thought it appropriate because it was not as final as execution, and they believed that execution was not an appropriate punishment for any crime. Still more thought that execution was the standard sentence for such a crime in the realm, and so it ought to be the sentence in this case; creativity in sentencing was not something they were comfortable with. Taia and Whitestar just sat quietly; Taia still wasn't certain she knew which answer they would come up with. Could she do it? She thought so. At least, she thought she had the technical ability, and with her energy joined with Whitestar she could make up the difference for not having a Gift as powerful as Talia's had been. But in order to prepare Leisha's emotions regarding her trauma before she could transfer them to the three criminals, Taia would come very close to feeling them herself. She wasn't sure she was ready for that.

But this was just another battle, like any other, she decided; and she had never run from one of those in her life. She wasn't about to start now. She could face her fears. She could face her demons. She didn't have to look forward to it, but she could do it, and she would.

"We will recess for midday meal," said Kris. "We will reconvene in two candlemarks, and you will vote on whether we inflict Talia's brand of justice on these criminals, or whether we execute."

The town members filed out of the doors, a hive of busy conversation. Everyone had an opinion; it wasn't clear, from listening to them, what the vote would bring. Taia, Whitestar and the Heralds went back to Taia and Whitestar's camp to await the vote; the birds had brought them a deer to cook for their midday meal. Taia quickly skinned and dressed the meat, cutting it into more manageable pieces that they could cook for the immediate meal while spicing the rest to be smoked for dinner later that evening. Whitestar took the smaller pieces and spiced them for their midday meal, spitted them and began roasting them over the fire. The Heralds provided some root vegetables and bread they had bought from local farmers and the baker; Lyra had purchased some actual butter, and contributed that as well as some kava she had brought in a couple of skins.

"What do you think they'll decide?" asked Lyra.

"I prefer not to speculate, but I think they'll go with Talia's method," said Liana. "This is a town that appreciates justice, but none of them are too keen on watching men be executed."

"I suppose that speaks rather well of them," said Riek. "I can't say I was looking forward to administering that execution."

"You wouldn't have had to do it," said Kris. "I would."

"No," said Liana. "No, we can't have the Heir to the throne administering executions by his own hand. It sets a bad precedent."

"Why?" asked Kris. "I'm just a regular Herald, like any of you. I can condemn someone to be executed; what difference would it make if I carried it out myself?"

"It makes a huge difference," said Taia. "What does it say to anyone who comes to you with a request, that the King executes his own criminals? Would you feel comfortable coming to a ruler like that and requesting, well, anything?"

"Exactly," said Riek. "No one is doubting your willingness. But it would not be appropriate. And it's not just because you're the Heir, either; the judge is never also the executioner. If Lyra had been the judge in this case, she could not be the executioner."

"Alright," said Kris. "I won't pretend I was looking forward to it, anyway. I've never killed anyone before, and I'm not really looking forward either to ordering the execution, should that be the way the vote turns out. But I don't want to ask any of you to do something I wouldn't do myself, either."

"And a poor Herald you would be if you did," said Whitestar. "A Herald isn't supposed to enjoy killing, regardless of the reason for it; neither is he supposed to enjoy passing off responsibility. But this is one of those cases where you can avoid both the killing and the responsibility without guilt!"

They finished their meal, and it was time to head back to the village hall for the vote. Taia was nervous; she wasn't sure she was prepared. She tried to reassure herself that even if they voted for Talia's justice, she would likely not administer it until the following day; but the waiting would almost be worse. She almost hoped they voted for execution; she almost regretted making the offer in the first place. But she was angry with herself for thinking that. She was Shin'a'in; she was no coward.

They walked into the hall; the villagers were already there. No one spoke; they all just sat still and stared straight ahead. Everyone seemed to be a little bit nervous. Kris took his place at the judges' table while Lyra and Riek took their positions as advocates. The men assigned to bring in the prisoners did so, and everyone was in place. It was quiet enough to hear the proverbial pin drop; Taia imagined that she could hear the bead of sweat drip from her brow.

"We will now vote," said Kris. "All those in favor of execution, say aye and raise your right hand."

There was a rumble of 'ayes' and some hands went up.

"All those in favor of Talia's justice, say aye and raise your right hand."

It was obvious what the town had decided; they had voted for Talia's justice.

"Very well," said Kris. "Taia shena Pretera'sedrin k'Treva will administer Talia's justice at her earliest convenience."

Kris rapped his gavel on the desk and everyone stood while the criminals were removed from the courtroom and taken back to their cells. The rest of the villagers got up and left the room, talking animatedly about what they thought it would be like, what they thought would be the result of their decision. Taia and Whitestar waited for the four Heralds, and then they gathered to discuss what would happen next.

"Should I do this in front of the whole town?" asked Taia. "I think such a large audience would honestly be inappropriate, rather like a carnival show, but I don't know that doing it behind closed doors is a good idea either."

"I think that Leisha and her mother should be present, should they desire," said Lyra. "And maybe the mayor, to attest to the fact that it was done. No more."

"I agree," said Kris. "Are you ready, Taia, or do you need some time to prepare?"

"I'd just as soon get it done," said Taia. "Riek, if you would fetch the mayor, and Liana if you would fetch Leisha and her mother, that would be lovely. Lyra, if you would be so kind as to fetch some willowbark tea for both myself and Whitestar, I'm sure we will need it, and Kris if you would make sure Tikien is here, and Ileh, we will need to ride back to the campsite."

The Heralds all ran off to their respective duties, none of them finding it the least bit strange that they were following orders of non-Herald bodyguards instead of giving them. In about half a candlemark they returned with everything they had been asked to bring; Taia asked Tikien and Ileh to wait for them behind the building. She didn't want it to be widely known that they would not be able to walk back to their camp. Whitestar was glad she had left the venison smoking back at their camp, since she didn't think she'd be in any state to actually prepare and cook anything fresh. Also, she truly loved smoked venison.

"Are you ready for this?" Whitestar asked Taia.

"As I'll ever be," Taia replied. They walked to the cell where the prisoners were being held; Leisha, her mother, the mayor and the Heralds were there waiting for them.

"Leisha, I'm going to 'look' into your memories. You might notice feeling a sort of 'presence' in your mind, but it won't hurt. And I will not look at anything beyond this experience in order to administer this justice. Are you willing?" asked Taia.

"Yes," Leisha replied. She was a little nervous, but not frightened. Whitestar lowered the shield she had been keeping over the girl; Taia closed her eyes.

Taia 'looked' into Leisha's memories, and nearly lost her focus; her Gift not only made it possible to administer this, but it also made it so that she 'felt' every one of Leisha's feelings as if they were her own, and they were a little too close to home for her. She clamped a tight wall around her own feelings, determined not to be lost in them, and proceeded. She gathered all of Leisha's pain, her rage, her fear, her humiliation, and then she focused on each of the prisoners in turn. She was using some of Whitestar's energy for this part; it wasn't easy to make an unGifted person feel, on an endless loop, the emotions of another. Leisha had managed to project her pain onto the entire village, but not so that they felt it specifically; it had merely created a general sense of malaise and irritability. Taia wanted these men to feel exactly what Leisha had felt, and that took precision. And no small amount of force.

She finished with the first two, who promptly collapsed; they would have terrible headaches for the next day or so, and after that they would see exactly whether or not this 'justice' was effective for them, or if Taia had failed. She was able to sense the projected feelings coming from them, however, when she extended her Gift to determine her success; she planted the 'trigger', so that if they truly repented of their actions then they would feel only their own emotions again and serve a regular sentence in prison instead. When she got to the third man, however, she encountered a surprise; one that sickened her.

This man was Gifted.

He had a Gift of Empathy, and a bit of Thoughtsensing as well. He had used it to feel all of Leisha's emotions during his use of her, and it had excited him further. Taia was enraged, and shocked. This punishment, at its level, would do nothing but make this man even more dangerous than he had previously been. So she improvised; she took the shield off her own feelings. All the rage, the pain, the humiliation she still felt regarding her incarceration with Mornelithe Falconsbane, combined with that of Leisha herself – she wound that together into a dagger, so that the man couldn't tell which was Leisha's pain and which was anyone else's. She didn't put her name or face on it; she didn't want him to be able to identify that it was even a particular person's pain. She could see in his memories that Leisha had not been his first victim by far, so she felt justified in multiplying his punishment; the first two men, this had been their first such offense. They were by no means good men, but they had not previously committed rape. This third man had, and on victims far younger than even poor Leisha.

When she was finished administering this man's punishment, she used Tale'edras teachings to seal his Gifts forever, so that he could never use them again, whether to hurt anyone or to heal them. She hesitated in installing the trigger that would release him; but she had promised to do so, and so she did. The man collapsed, unconscious; he would wake with the same headache as the other two, only significantly worse, and she hoped it was a success; she could feel the emotions roiling off of him, and knew she had planted them well.

"I am finished," she said, opening her eyes and swaying on her feet only a little.

"Was it a success?" asked Kris.

"As far as I can tell," said Taia. "They will feel Leisha's feelings when they wake; only time will tell exactly how that will affect them."

"Let's hope it affects them exactly as we intended," said Riek with a certain tone of vengefulness.

"I believe it will," said Whitestar.

:And by the way, Rolan approves of your improvisation on the third one.: Lyra said.

:He was paying attention? Well, that little sneak.: answered Taia. :I'm glad, I was a little uncomfortable about modifying the sentence, but I didn't know how else to make it not a reward for that…..creature.:

:Exactly.: said Lyra.

There was a commotion at the front door; Kris went to open it, ready to reprimand anyone interrupting such a sentence; but at the door stood a small Companion, saddled but with no rider. She walked right into the door, not hardly noticing that the space was clearly too small to contain herself along with all the people in the room; the people quickly plastered themselves against the walls or exited, if they could. The Companion walked straight up to Leisha, and as was no surprise to anyone but Leisha herself, Chose the girl.

:I am Falla: she said. :I Choose you, Leisha. You will be mine, and I yours. We neither shall be alone again.:


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter thirty**

"Well," said Whitestar. "I guess now we don't have to stay and train the girl in her Gift."

"Good thing, too," said Liana. "We need to get moving, we're already overdue for the next stop on our circuit."

"We'd better say our goodbyes, then," said Lyra. They loaded up their horses and Companions and rode through the town. The townspeople were sad to see them go, but happy that their problem had been solved; the prisoners had been transported to the guardpost, where they were, in fact, reported to be completely catatonic. They apparently moaned and drooled in their misery, particularly the two that had not been Gifted; they were fed a liquefied diet by whoever had the misfortune of that assignment that day, and monitored by the Healers at the post. The third man, the one that Taia had discovered and sealed his Gift, was found hanged in his cell shortly after he awakened. Taia was sorry, but not surprised, that he had taken the easy way out of his punishment.

When they arrived at Leisha's house, they found the girl similarly packed and ready to ride Falla to Haven to begin Heraldic training. The six of them dismounted; his was a goodbye that could not be said in passing.

"Thank you all so much," said Leisha. "I know I have a long road ahead of me, but I'm so grateful for all your help."

"I wonder if you'll still feel that way when you come to me for weapons training!" laughed Taia as she gave the girl a hug.

"I get to have you for a teacher?" said Leisha.

"I doubt you'll be excited about that past the first day, I'm not going to go easy on you just because I like you!" laughed Taia.

"In fact, it's likely to be the other way around – she'll be harder on you because she likes you," said Whitestar. "Because the more you learn, the more likely you are to live to retire."

"Well good, then, I want my girl to retire!" said Meli, coming out from the kitchen. She had obviously been crying; tears of pride, tears of joy, tears of loss. She was proud of her girl, but a little scared for her, and she would miss her a great deal.

"Meli, the Crown will send compensation for the fact that Leisha will not be at home to help with the household anymore; Nesha certainly proved capable, but she is too young. We have spoken with the villagers, and they are to provide you with help from here on out. There will be someone fetching your water in the morning, and a member of the village will be by to help every day with childcare," said Kris.

"We have also notified the Crown that there needs to be a proper school in this village," said Lyra. "It is the law in Valdemar that all children attend school until they reach 16 years of age; your town does not have a teacher. One will be sent."

"Thank you," said Meli. "The previous teacher died, and no one arrived to take his place. The local priest had taken over what he could, and the boys have been attending, and Nesha when she could, but Leisha was needed at home. I'm sorry for it, but that's the way it is. I couldn't work and take care of Kili, and she is too young for school."

"Well that shouldn't be a problem anymore," said Lyra. "The other wives in the town have decided to rotate caring for Kili while you're at work if you are willing to give them a discount on the candles every now and again. The boys and Nesha will be able to attend a proper school, and Leisha will be at Haven."

"We're going to miss her," said Par.

"I'll write you letters all the time, so you'd better keep up on your homework so you can read them!" joked Leisha.

There were hugs and goodbyes all around; then Taia and Whitestar and their charges re-mounted and rode off north, while Leisha mounted Falla and they began the trek south toward Haven. When they had passed the border of the village, Taia had one question.

"Liana," she began, "why didn't Falla manage to Choose Leisha before this happened, and spare her the whole ordeal?"

"That is an excellent question for the Companions," said Liana. "My guess is that since her Gift had not yet awakened, Falla didn't know who her Chosen was going to be."

:That is exactly right, unfortunately.: Rolan said into her mind. :Falla likely could not sense her Chosen until the Gift was awakened; had Leisha not been attacked, that may not have happened for a few more years. She may have ended up being Chosen by an entirely different Companion. As it was, Falla left Haven the moment she Felt Leisha; unfortunately, she could only Feel the girl after the Gift was awakened, and we all know how that happened.:

:Thank you.: Taia answered.

They rode on. They went through a few towns, did the standard reading of new laws, solved the minor disputes. To everyone's great relief, they did not encounter anything more significant than a border dispute, although there were a few of those. There was the random bandit attack, of course; there was no escaping those, although there weren't many. They became much less frequent once they turned west and away from the Hardornen border. Ryki was starting to be able to fly again, although only very short distances and not at the height he enjoyed, and he didn't have the speed or agility to hunt. Taia was encouraged that he might adapt, though, and be able to return at least to some version of his former self. He was certainly happier, but still frustrated.

:Want hunt.: he said. :Want fly. Like before. Why not fixed.:

:Hurt bad.: said Taia. :Maybe not ever fixed. Maybe take long time.:

:Want fixed NOW.: said Ryki, looking at his bondmate accusingly.

:Patience.: said Taia. :Whitestar will look tonight, see if she can help.:

:Good.: said Ryki. :Whitestar fix. Ryki fly high again, hunt again. Good.:

:She will try.: said Taia. :She maybe cannot fix more. Ryki still good friend.:

Ryki trilled at her; she knew he felt like he was useless and not contributing anything to their strange family. He had been the day-scout for the group for a long time; Jyus was now serving that role, along with Syen, and they both hunted for everyone. Sera was the night-scout, still, and she hunted for both herself and Ryki, at least for whatever Syen and Jyus did not provide. Breakfast was usually Sera's contribution. She truly did not mind, but Ryki did not enjoy being helpless. Taia resolved to find something he could do that none of the others could do, even if his flying ability never returned.

:ATTACK!: Syen cried into Whitestar's mind, even as she screamed a raptorial battle cry at the attackers that Taia and Whitestar still couldn't see. They urged their horses to catch up with the Companions while Taia Mindspoke the group to hold up and assume defensive positions. Liana and Riek pulled to a complete stop and the four of them surrounded Kris and Lyra; Kris and Lyra pulled their swords while the other four pulled out bows and strung arrows. Mian and Ren, the packhorse and Ryki's mount, stood in the circle with Lyra and Kris as extra fighters should the still-unseen attackers make it through the four others; Sera woke with Syen's warning and took her place in the sky to help with the attack. If they could find it.

"Whitestar, you're going to have to figure out what Syen sees and where it is," Taia said.

"Working on it," Whitestar says. "Try looking with MageSight; that may be why we can't see them yet."

Taia looked with MageSight and was shocked at what she saw; three mages, two of which were illusioning themselves as well as a small army of about a score of well-armed fighters, and a third mage that had just finished preparing a lightning bolt that he was casting straight at Kris. Sheka.

Taia threw a shield up over both Heirs just in time to see the lightning bolt crash into it. Kris blanched, but held his ground.

"Whitestar, do battle with the mages," she yelled. "I'm going to pick off as many with my bow as I can, but we're going to have a fight on our hands."

Ryki flapped his wings and screamed a warning at the attackers, but there was little he could do. He did begin flying circles around the Heirs, landing again when his wing gave out, but he didn't quit.

:Will. Keep. Arrows. Away.: he said determinedly. :Will NOT be useless. Will do SOMETHING.:

:You are far from useless, Ryki.: said Taia. :This is something no one else can be spared for. Good job.:

Taia fired arrows at the attacking fighters, who were now charging towards them. She fired two at a time, as was her style, and more of them hit their mark than didn't; the Heralds also fired at them, but they were just firing in the same direction as Taia. They didn't have MageSight; they couldn't yet see the fighters. Taia's arrows hit their marks, but the fighters were armored, and well. While the arrows hit the oncoming fighters, few of them scored a killing or even incapacitating blow. This was an attack that had been well planned; Taia wondered who and why, but figured those were questions for afterwards. First, they had to survive.

Syen dropped out of the sky and took out one of the supporting mages, making the illusion vanish over roughly half the fighters; Sera took out the other, and suddenly everyone could see the approaching fighters. Not a moment too soon, either; they were close enough now that Taia, Liana and Riek had drawn their swords and were preparing for a desperate sword fight. Syen, Sera and Jyus continued dropping from the sky, tearing at whatever exposed flesh they could hit, and pulling off helmets when they couldn't; Whitestar was doing battle with the remaining mage, who was continuing to send mage-attacks at a now fully-shielded Kris and Lyra while shielding himself against Whitestar's attacks. Whitestar was frustrated; the mage was not even the slightest bit distracted by her attack, and was singularly focused on taking out the Heir. She changed the shielding on them into something Firesong had taught her; this kind of shield was reflective. It reflected whatever attack was sent against it at the caster; it required more energy, which was why she didn't use it all the time. But she had Taia's to utilize as well as her own, and when that began to flag, Rolan and Alaran began to feed her their energy as well. She continued on, grimly; this was a powerful mage, and a determined one. The attacks he was sending were nothing she was familiar with, either, and her ability to defend against them was entirely intuitive. Mage attacks generally were defended against based on what type of attack it was; not being familiar with this type was a handicap Whitestar was not used to having. Having been raised and trained Tale'edras with the intention of being their best, coupled with two decades of mercenary experience and teaching – there wasn't a lot Whitestar or Taia hadn't seen; but this was entirely unfamiliar.

Meanwhile, Taia, Riek and Liana had their hands full against the fighters. Taia fought with her double-sworded technique as usual, and Tikien fought ably next to the Companions as well. They fought in a circle, surrounding the Heirs and Whitestar. Kris and Lyra threw knives at the attackers as they had an open shot, but other than that they were forbidden to take part in the fighting. They were not happy about this, but Taia was adamant. Her entire presence on this field circuit was to make sure the Heirs were not assassinated, and she would be damned to the nine hells if they died in battle before she did. Ryki was determinedly pulling arrows out of the sky before they could hit either Kris or Lyra, but given his lack of flying range they were near things; and Taia knew his wing wouldn't tolerate much more strain.

:Sera: she said. :Have Jyus help with the arrows, there are too many for Ryki.:

:Yes.: said Sera. :Ryki doing very well, but too much for one bird.:

:Thank you.: said Taia, and was rewarded with the usual wave of irritation she received whenever she thanked her birds for doing what they saw as their duty. She grinned and got back to focusing on her swords, just as Jyus dropped in to help with the arrows. Sera and Syen were more effective than Jyus in actual attacks anyway, being larger, much to his frustration. At least this way all of them could perform at something they were successful at. They had taken down about half of the sword fighters, but the bowmen were yet untouched. Seeing as how bowmen were generally less well armored than sword, Taia decided that Syen and Sera needed to direct their focus that way, and Sera agreed; the two raptors took off and switched their focus. After about a candlemark of fighting, the fighters were down, the bowmen were finished off – but Whitestar was still grimly doing battle with the mage, and showed no sign of making progress. Taia realized he had gotten his strength from the deaths and injuries accrued from the fight itself; he was a blood mage. And since they were all actively bleeding, he would not run out of energy any time soon.

So she drew one of her throwing knives, and settled herself in the saddle. The mage was too far away to see with her eyes; he was fighting from just beyond the tree line. So she closed her eyes and found him with Farsight. She readied her knife and threw in the direction of the mage and used Fetching to make sure it hit its mark. She watched as the knife buried itself securely in the mage's right eyeball; he fell, in a rather animated, slow-motion descent to the ground. It was over.

They were all of them injured – except the Heirs – and Riek severely, but it was over, and they would live. They made camp as quickly as they could; Kris and Lyra were tasked with pulling the bodies of the fallen away from their campsite. Riek couldn't travel, Liana shouldn't, and Taia needed to stay behind and help Whitestar with the injuries. They didn't mind; it was an unpleasant job, but at least they could do something useful. They borrowed Mian and Ren, once they were unloaded, and hauled the bodies into the woods. They didn't have shovels, so they couldn't bury them.

:Taia.: said Lyra. :Can you ask your bird if there are predators in the area likely to take care of these bodies? We don't have shovels, and we're not sure what to do.:

:Sera says that there are plenty of scavengers around, and nothing likely to carry their hunger on to the living. Good question, though; if we weren't days away from the nearest village, we might go and get the guard to help. As it is, this is the best we can do.: Taia answered.

Whitestar and Taia were far too drained to do more than the absolute necessity for actual Healing; Whitestar could make sure Riek's injury, a laceration to his gut that had there not been a Healer currently present would have been fatal by nightfall, was no longer life-threatening. The rest of their injuries, she stopped the bleeding as best she could and stitched the rest; she was out of energy, and so was Taia. The energy she had used to Heal Riek in the first place had come from his Companion. Sera and Syen returned to the camp, having each brought in a wild pig; Jyus brought some pheasants, as well. The entire group thanked them profusely, to which they responded with indignation; hunting for the group was their responsibility. Defense and aid in an attack was their responsibility. They were proud of their contributions, and accepting praise for doing their job was seen as almost an insult by them. Taia and Whitestar grinned at them and scratched their chests in thanks anyway.

Taia skinned and dressed the meat while Whitestar and Liana put up their respective tents; Kris and Lyra returned, and Lyra put up their tent while Kris built the fire. Riek, being out of commission, leaned back against his Companion and watched. He would be eating broth, with very small bites of meat in it; Whitestar wasn't sure his stomach could handle anything more substantial until she could do some more Healing on him in the morning. She took the meat and spiced it; she roast the pheasants over the fire and cut up pieces of one into some water she'd set to boil for Riek. When they were done, she cut the meat from the pigs and gave the birds whatever pieces they wanted when they'd had their fill of innards. She spiced it, wrapped it in its own hide, added a bit of water and buried it in the coals of the fire; it would make a wonderful breakfast, and there would be enough meat left for lunch as well. It was one of her favorite ways to cook pork, but not one she was able to do very often; only when she knew they would be staying in one place for at least two days. They all crawled into their tents after they were done eating and slept until morning; then they would make their best attempt to determine who had attacked them, and why, and whether or not they could expect more of the same.


	31. Chapter 31

**Chapter thirty-one**

The next morning, they woke early; Sera had kept watch as usual, but she was exhausted by the time the sun rose since she did not get her usual sleep the previous day. She returned to the tent to sleep for the day and Ryki rued the fact that he was unable to take over the scouting duties. He did decide that he was going to at least try to hunt for himself; he agreed to limit his quarry to slow moving small mammals like voles and woodchucks. Not his favorite meal, but he'd eaten them before and at least he could say he'd caught it himself. At least, if he was successful. And he was absolutely determined to be successful.

Syen and Jyus took over scouting, with Syen spending more time hunting. The slow-roasted pork would be sufficient for breakfast and perhaps lunch for the humans, but not for the birds. And all of them would need dinner. Syen wanted venison. So she took up a scouting pattern that took her farther away from the camp; this way she was not only more likely to find some venison for dinner, but she would be able to discover whether or not there were "friends" of yesterday's attackers on their way in time to give the group adequate warning. Jyus caught himself a rabbit for breakfast nearby, and secretly caught a second one to give Ryki if he was not able to feed himself; if Ryki was successful, he could always give it to Sera when she woke. Or eat it for lunch. But the other birds knew how frustrated Ryki was with being dependent on them for so much; despite the fact that they truly did not mind, Ryki was a valued friend to them regardless of his disability, Jyus wanted to make sure his friend didn't starve and also did not want to embarrass him. His job for the day was to scout a less long-distance pattern around the group, just on the chance that something or someone got past Syen. After all, she couldn't be both north and south of the camp at the same time.

Whitestar and Taia both woke with severe reaction headaches, but nothing could be done about it. They had not recovered all of their energy, by far, but Riek still needed healing. Liana, too; she had a broken arm and scattered lacerations and arrow wounds. Whitestar was not able to do anything for the arm but set it and splint it like any herb-healer could do; bone healing required far more energy than she had available at the moment, and what energy she did have, Riek needed more urgently. They all had lacerations and arrow wounds, though; Taia had Fetched the arrows out of human, horse and Companion the previous day, but the wounds themselves as well as the sword cuts could only be stitched. Again, like any herb-healer could have done. Whitestar spent the morning Healing Riek, though, so that he could eat regular food. He would be sore for awhile, but the wound was not infected and it was now closed. Taia dug the pork out from the coals and unwrapped it; it had cooked perfectly, which did not at all surprise her. She cut portions off for everyone's breakfast, added water to the rest to keep it moist and rewrapped it, again burying it under the coals but farther out, so that it would not cook more but would be kept warm.

When Whitestar had finished what she was able to do, and they had all eaten their breakfast and were relaxing around the fire, they began to wonder who those attackers had been and where had they come from.

"They were wearing Empire uniforms," said Kris.

"I thought so," said Whitestar. "I had hoped I was wrong, but I thought so."

"No," said Taia. "No, they weren't Empire uniforms. Similar, but not quite. They had a different insignia on the chest, and the shade of grey was just a little bit different. I've never seen those uniforms before."

"Are you sure?" said Liana. "I mean, the only ones that would make sense would be Empire. We don't have any other enemies."

"That we know of," said Lyra. "We don't have a lot of contact with anyone west of Lake Evendim, or north of Sorrows. We really have no idea how they feel about us."

"And those are the only regions I'm not familiar with their uniforms," said Taia. "Those fighters have to be from somewhere like that. I'm going to take Mian and see if I can get a piece of a uniform, see if I can learn something from it."

"We should have thought of that last night when we were getting rid of the bodies," said Kris. "I'm sorry. That was stupid."

"No worries," said Taia. "I should have thought to remind you. It won't be the first scavenged corpse I have to undress."

Lyra shuddered, but didn't say anything. Taia got up on Mian; Kisten had enough injuries both from the sword and arrows that he should take the day off. Mian had taken a few arrows as well, but if she didn't ride too fast, he should be alright. So she went bareback to reduce the irritation to his wounds and headed off at a walk. She had injuries of her own she was nursing; an arrow to her right shoulder and one to her left thigh, sword gashes to both legs and her arms. Whitestar had only been able to stitch them, of course; all the energy she had to give, Riek needed. Taia was not really used to not being able to have her wounds Healed quickly and easily by her lifebonded; it was not often that Whitestar had had to use her energies for someone more critical before she Healed Taia, or herself. Taia had stitched up Whitestar's wounds as well the previous night, which was another thing she was not at all accustomed to. But it wasn't the first wound she'd stitched, so while it wasn't up to the standards of Healer's Collegium, it also wasn't an unskilled performance.

She rode off in the direction Lyra and Kris had said they took the bodies until she reached the forest line. She searched around for awhile until her nose told her she was in the right place; the corpses were not as far gone as they would have been if this were summer, but they were starting to rot. She dismounted; Mian was well trained, but no horse wanted to be in the area of rotting corpses and there was really no need to ask her to do it. She walked in the direction her nose told her to go and soon enough, she found the pile of dead soldiers. There were a good two dozen of them, plus the three mages. She sent a prayer of thanks to the Goddess that they had survived; there was really no good reason they should have, talent and experience or no. These were no bandits; they were trained soldiers, with armor and organization and they had come with a plan. Kris had clearly been their target; the mage had not even for a moment been distracted from sending his attacks at Kris, even while Whitestar attacked him relentlessly. The arrows from the bowmen were not truly aimed at Taia or the other members of their party, they were aimed at Kris; she knew, because Jyus and Ryki had pulled most of them from the air behind her, not from in front, despite the arrow wounds that they all – except for the Heirs – ended up with. Ryki had, unsurprisingly, been none too impressed that Taia had sent Jyus to help him; he had complained bitterly until she had pointed out to him that even had he been completely back to his old self, there had been too many arrows for one bird, and had he not been there it would have been Jyus and Sera. As it was, Ryki's contribution had allowed both Sera and Syen to remain on the field executing attacks, and that may very well have saved all of their lives.

But who, other than the Empire, would want to assassinate their Heir? Valdemar did not attack other nations as a matter of policy, they only defended. The only enemy other than the Empire that anyone could remember ever having was Karse, and they were allies now; they had fought Hardorn under Ancar, sure, but that was because of Ancar himself. Who could they possibly be? And why did they hate Valdemar enough to not only know who and where the Heirs were, but send a troupe of fighters to kill them? Taia had no doubt that while Kris was the primary target, Lyra would have been a close second. While the mage had focused all of his attacks on Kris, the bowmen had fired at either of them indiscriminately, and had there been no mage to counter him – both Heirs would have quickly fallen. As it was, Kris survived the mage's initial attack only because first, Syen had seen them, and second, Taia had used MageSight to locate them and not a second too soon, either. One second later and that first attack would have killed Kris outright. Two seconds and Lyra would have been gone as well.

:Taia.: Out of the blue, Kerowyn was Mindspeaking her. Since when did Kero have the ability to Mindspeak across this distance?

:I don't, silly. Sayvil is boosting me.: Kerowyn read her mind. :There has been an assassination attempt on Selenay.:

:WHAT?!: Taia responded. :Is she okay? Is Elspeth okay? What happened?:

:We're not sure, actually.: Kerowyn said. Taia could 'hear' the frustration in her friend's mindvoice. :But yes, Selenay is fine. Daren was there, and between the two of them they were able to fend off their attacker. Why do you ask about Elspeth?:

:Because there was an assassination attempt on Kris and Lyra yesterday.: Taia replied. :Before you ask, they're fine. But it was planned. Well planned. There were two dozen fighters, plus three mages. They knew where we'd be, they knew there were bodyguards for the Heirs, and they were illusioned invisible right up until Syen and Sera took out the two mages holding the illusion. If Syen hadn't just happened to be flying over them and seen them at that moment, it would have been successful long before we even knew they were there.:

:Goddess.: Kero said. :You and Whitestar didn't sense them somehow?:

:No, they were too far away, and an illusion does not use enough energy that we would have noticed.: Taia said. :We are holed up now nursing our various injuries trying to figure out where these people came from and why they attacked us.:

:Any ideas?: asked Kero. :We think they're Empire, but we don't want to jump to conclusions.:

:They are not Empire.: said Taia. :The uniforms are similar, but not the same shade, and the insignia is different. I've never seen it before.:

:Sheka.: said Kero. :I didn't think it looked quite right, either. I fought just about everyone with the 'Bolts, and I know you've seen your share with the Fire Eagles, so if neither of us have ever seen this before, where does that leave us?:

:Lyra pointed out that we know basically nothing about anyone west of Evendim or north of Sorrows.: Taia said. :So I am stripping the armor and uniform from one of the corpses to try and examine it more closely.:

:Smart girl, that Lyra.: said Kero. :She's going to make one hell of a King's Own.:

:Yes she is.: said Taia. :How did they get to Selenay?:

:Posed as a guard.: said Kero. :They somehow got ahold of a uniform – I'm looking into how that happened, and someone's going to lose their job and maybe their head – got into the Palace Grounds and waited until Selenay and Daren were taking their evening stroll through the garden. Come to think of it, they knew Selenay took an evening stroll. Sheka. I have a lot of work to do.:

:Yes you do, and so do I.: said Taia. :And neither of us has enough energy to keep this up, with or without Sayvil. Thank you, by the way, Sayvil. Take care of yourself, old friend. I don't want to bury anyone else just yet.:

:You, too.: said Kero. :And me neither.:

Well this changed things. How, Taia wasn't exactly sure; but it was clear that someone was bent on taking out all of Valdemar's rulers. She wondered why they hadn't gone after Elspeth, but decided to take it as a small blessing. Maybe Elspeth had been out of the line of succession long enough that whoever this enemy was, they didn't see her as a threat; or maybe they didn't want to attack a mage just yet. Maybe they didn't have a lot of mages, and had bet what they did have on taking out Kris and Lyra; maybe they decided the presence of Taia and Whitestar necessitated the risk of their mage corps.

Or maybe Kerowyn hadn't caught all the attackers.

:Kero.: Taia sent. :Watch Elspeth. Warn her. I have a feeling you still have an attack coming.:

:I think you're right.: her friend replied. :If I had known about the twins' being attacked sooner, I would have set a guard on her, not that she would accept it. But she will have to accept something.:

:She won't take a bodyguard.: said Taia. :But see if she'll agree to not go anywhere without Darkwind and Gwena. And have Vree scout whatever area they're in. Like I said, without Syen, we'd all be dead.:

:Good idea.: said Kero. :I think she'll agree to that, at least.:

:If she won't, tell her that I will forcibly Gate her to my presence and tie her to my horse.: said Taia. :She knows I can and she knows I will.:

:That she does.: laughed Kero. :That she does.:

Taia actually wished she were home just to see Elspeth's face when Kero gave her that warning. She wished she were home for more than one reason, but for the time being they were actually safer where they were. In Haven, they would have the benefit of all the Heralds, the Guard, and the army for their defense; but that hadn't kept out whoever had attacked Selenay. And having all the royals in one place was asking for trouble, if this nebulous enemy was hell-bent on taking them all out. And it seemed they were. Sheka. Taia had a lot of work to do. They needed to figure out where these people were from, and fast. She finished stripping one of the corpses, then decided to strip a mage as well; they wore slightly different clothing, and maybe she'd get lucky and get more information if she had both examples. She resolved that the moment her energies returned, she would use her Farsight to the limits of her ability to try and find a uniform that matched these; at least then maybe they would have some idea of where these assassins had come from. She thought it rather ironic that less than a year past she was acting as assassin herself, and now she was trying to track some. She hoped that this enemy hadn't put as much planning into covering their trail as she and Whitestar had. She hoped she was a better tracker than the Empire had proven to be.

She hoped she wasn't too late.


	32. Chapter 32

**Chapter thirty-two**

Taia returned to the camp with the uniforms as quickly as she could. She shared her conversation with Kerowyn with the rest of the group and after reassuring the twins that their parents were fine, and that Kerowyn would see to it that they remained that way, they both insisted that it was time to return to Haven to be with their family.

"We'll be safer there," said Lyra.

"We need to be there to help keep Mother safe, and Elspeth," said Kris.

"Haven is the worst possible place for you right now," said Taia. "This is the safest. First, while you are on circuit, any assassination attempt on your Royal House has to be divided; they can't just send an army towards Haven and take out the lot of you. Second, your circuit schedule is no longer going to be predictable. Liana, Riek – I leave that to you. Remaining stops they need to make should be at a minimum, and in no predictable pattern."

"But – " Kris began to object.

"Kris, you are the Heir," began Taia. "You need to think like one. I know you want to go home, make sure your mother is safe, your father, your sister. But what happens if whoever this enemy is – "

"You mean you still don't know?" screeched Lyra.

"No," said Taia. "We don't. Neither Kero or I recognized this insignia, and between us we've fought just about everyone. If they make it into Haven, and successfully eliminate Selenay, Daren – who isn't in line for the throne anyway, but they might not know that – and Elspeth, it will be that much easier for them to take out the two of you with them; you'll be right there. Easy to find."

"True, but – " started Kris.

"But you'd have the entire Heraldic Circle plus the Guard around you, yes," said Taia. "Believe it or not, I had thought of that. Goddess knows that last attempt was a close enough call, I don't particularly want to repeat it. But in Haven, you're not a moving target. And the Circle and the Guard will be divided, trying to guard both your mother, yourselves, and Elspeth, all while trying to keep things as normal as possible and figure out where this is coming from."

"Yes, but – " started Lyra.

"But nothing," said Taia. "Out here, yes, there are just the six of us, not including anything furry or feathered. The Companions might as well be an entire army in themselves, and my horses are no slouches and neither are the birds. We ARE a small army. And we're a moving target. And we're forcing them to divide their efforts. This is the safest place for you."

"You're right," said Kris. "But I still don't like it."

"That is completely understandable," said Whitestar. "And we will stay in contact with Haven as frequently as possible, and we will Gate back if necessary. But this is the safest path."

"Tomorrow I'm going to use Farsight to look as far west as I possibly can, try to figure out where this insignia is from," said Taia. "I'll do so in trance, so that I can look farther. With any luck, we'll at least have the answer to that question."

"Good," said Riek. "And then I almost want to suggest taking the fight to them, but I know how incapable we are of actually doing that at this point."

"Well, if we figure out who it was, a military response is not out of the question by a long shot," said Kris. "They attempted assassination on the ruling family of Valdemar. If that is not a declaration of war, I don't know what is."

"Absolutely," said Liana. "And I'll be the first to march across that border."

When everyone had separated to their own activities – Liana and Riek to redesign the rest of the circuit, Lyra and Kris to commiserate over the situation and Whitestar to do healing on everyone in turn – Taia approached Rolan.

:Rolan.: she began. He looked at her, for once not annoyed that she was bespeaking him. :You must realize that the fact that these assassins knew so much about where both Selenay and the twins would be means that we have a spy, and a good one.:

:Yes.: Rolan replied. :And I have no idea who it might be, before you ask.:

:I didn't think you would, or rather I figured if you did, you would have done something about it.: Taia said. :I wanted to ask you to please notify the appropriate Herald, and make sure they are aware of the fact.:

:Kerowyn is the appropriate Herald, also Alberich and Jeri.: said Rolan. :I will do so.:

:Thank you.: said Taia.

Rolan nodded. Taia returned to examine the uniforms. It was quite frustrating; she really wasn't sure what she was looking for. She knew she hadn't seen the insignias before, and Whitestar had been fighting against mage attacks neither of them had ever seen. They had seen quite a few, in their mercenary days, and so had Kerowyn; for none of them to have ever seen it before was surprising. Taia looked closely at the soldier's uniform; it was a strange fabric. Blue grey, woven, very soft like silk, but strong. The weave was tight; it was hard to even see the individual threads, but when she did, she noticed that it wasn't that the fabric itself was dyed blue grey; the threads were alternating blue and grey, and the weave was so tight that unless she looked very closely, she couldn't differentiate the colors and perceived it as a solid dye. That was a fascinating technique; she might have to tell Andrien about it so that she could try it. Taia didn't weave herself, but Andrien did.

The insignia itself looked rather odd; it was a tree, with arrows crossed in front of it. Taia thought about the twins' idea that perhaps these fighters came from somewhere north or west, and considered that theory with the evidence of lightweight, dark-colored uniforms that would easily blend in to a forest and an insignia that featured a large tree. North was cold; she had traveled only a few times to the Forest of Sorrows, the coldest part of Valdemar. It was certainly not her favorite region, with her joints. The forest itself was impressive and beautiful, but beyond the forest there were not a lot of trees; mostly just scrub. It was too cold for much else to grow. Was this tree symbolic of the Forest of Sorrows? She hardly thought so; it wasn't the right type of tree, and besides, Sorrows was Valdemaran territory. Surely they would have heard of a population of people living there that had managed to recruit and train such effective soldiers and mages.

But the Pelagiris; those were the right species – as far as Pelagiris trees could be considered a species – that this insignia could represent. No one, including the Tale'edras, was entirely sure how far west the Pelegiris went, or what was on the other side of it. What if there was a population of people that lived on the edge of wherever that was? That seemed fairly likely, considering the fact that this fabric was lightweight enough to keep a person cool in a warm climate; it was tightly woven, so it wouldn't snag on a branch and like Sorrows, it would blend in to a forest environment. She decided that in the morning, this area was where she would try to scan with her Farsight. It would be like searching for the proverbial needle in the haystack, but it was the best chance they had.

She shared her observations with the rest of the group, and then helped Whitestar with the Healing. They were far enough along that Whitestar thought they'd be safe to move on the next day, which Taia was excited to do. As much as she was enjoying staying in one place for a bit, and more than that she was enjoying the fact that Ryki was having some success at hunting, which he couldn't do on the road; they were sitting ducks. Or rather, nesting rabbits, as Sera would say. Easy targets, and she didn't intend to continue being one any longer than necessary. So they ate their dinner, which was oddly enough roast duck, and went to bed in preparation for the next day.

In the morning, Taia spent a few candlemarks in trance while the rest of the group packed up the camp and loaded up the horses. Whitestar spent a bit more time Healing Riek and Liana – she had finally made enough progress on Riek's abdominal wound that she could use some energy to speed up the healing in Liana's arm. Taia sat on a blanket and leaned up against a tree; she closed her eyes and sent her consciousness into a trance. Whitestar would be able to rouse her at the first sign of trouble, so they were safe. Years of mercenary experience meant that she woke completely, ready to fight, from whatever state she happened to be in when the unlucky soul awakened her; most of the time, if it was anyone other than Whitestar or her birds, the person to do so had better be very brave. She used her Farsight to scan west and south, as far as she could go; she reached k'Treva Vale, then k'Sheyna, k'Leshya and finally k'Vala; if they'd been in Haven, she might have tried an old scrying technique. But she'd never been very good at that, and anyway it required a bowl and clear water, and she had neither. So Farsight it was. She reached the edge of where she could go without trance, which was actually an incredible range; Farsight was one of her stronger Gifts. And then she continued. She knew she was going to have a reaction headache by the time she was done, but if she could determine who these attackers were it would be well worth it. And if she didn't – well, she would just have to try again as soon as her energies recovered.

She reached the edge of the Pelagiris, a territory no one she knew had ever seen. It was an interesting landscape; giant trees gave way to sand and rock and vine, with gentle slopes leading to tall grassland of a type she'd never seen. She saw the grasses moving, as if the wind was blowing; of course, she couldn't feel it. The sky was a pure blue, and she thought that if she were to live somewhere else, this may very well be the place. It was beautiful. A little bit farther and she saw a great expanse of water, with waves as high as her horse. But no people. So she continued to 'look' south, but along the same path of the treeline. She felt certain that the trees had something to do with this enemy, or it wouldn't have been included in their insignia. Soon the land between the trees and the water grew, and became wider; she began to see signs of human inhabitance, although no housing to speak of. But there were obvious campsites and paths cut through the grasses.

She kept going, even though she knew she was reaching the end of her strength; finally, she saw a village. She looked at the signs outside the building; there were a few carvings of trees, but none that looked quite like the insignia in question. She kept looking. Finally she came to a couple of buildings that looked more official, and there were flags hanging from either side of the entrance; she was hopeful, the fabric appeared similar, the color similar – but, no. the insignia was not the same. And she was out of strength; she could not continue searching. Sheka. She supposed it was too much to ask to find the right place on the first try, but still she had hoped. She would try again another day.

"I didn't find it," she said when she opened her eyes; her words slurred only a little. "I think I'm close, though. When we stop at an inn, Whitestar, we should scry, and I think we'll find it that way. I think it's west of the Pelagiris and south; the village I did find had a similar insignia, but not the same."

"Are you sure it's not north?" asked Lyra. "I mean, I just don't want to spend all of our time looking in one direction."

"No, I'm not," said Taia. "But the fabric is lightweight. It's cold now; I can't imagine a group of people used to cold weather would travel dressed that way. I suppose, though, it's not impossible; I want to try and look a little farther south, though, before I turn around."

"You were at the edge of your range, though, as it was," said Whitestar. "Do you think you are able to see farther?"

"That's why I want to scry," said Taia. "It's not my strongest ability, but it's our best chance. Because no, I can't see any farther, but we need to."

She mounted Tkien and they left the campsite. Taia was glad to leave the place; there was no telling whether or not there was another band of fighters coming after the first, and they needed to not be sitting still. The first group had known exactly where they were and what path they were on, so being moving targets hadn't helped them much either, but it was all they had at the moment. Taia had a bit of a reaction headache forming, so she slept in the saddle until it wore off; it was safe enough. Syen or Jyus would alert Whitestar at the first sign of trouble, and that would be enough to wake Taia; years of mercenary training left both of them able to be instantaly alert and ready to fight. Those were not reflexes that died, no matter how many years of featherbeds and indoor living they had had.

They stopped for lunch, and Taia's headache was nearly gone. They quickly roasted the pheasants that Jyus had caught and ate them in the saddle; being several days behind, they didn't want to rush enough to eat trail rations, but there was no reason they needed to linger around a fire to eat either. Besides, the horses needed watering, the birds had gone to the trouble of hunting for something that cooked quickly and Whitestar was such a wonderful cook, it was hard to resist. By evening they had reached the waystation, where there would be a bowl that Taia and Whitestar could use to scry. They decided to do so in the morning; Taia needed a little more time to recover her energies. Sera woke up and went out to bring them a pig for dinner; Whitestar cooked it with their favorite spices, then wrapped the leftovers in the skin and buried them in the coals like they had done before. It would be an excellent breakfast, and there might be enough leftover to eat for lunch the next day. It would be cold, sure, but cold fresh meat still beat dry travel rations, and they probably shouldn't stop and cook something fresh every day. They were, after all, supposed to be on circuit.

They rose at dawn, and while Whitestar and Taia prepared to scry, the rest dug out the pork for breakfast. They ate, cleaned the waystation and loaded up the horses and Companions while the mages worked. Taia filled a bowl with water and set it on the table. She took the insignia, which she had removed from the enemy fighter's uniform, and placed it in the bottom of the bowl. She set the spell, and then watched the bowl. Combined with her Farsight, this would enhance the distance she would be able to see; but it would also use a lot more of her energy, which was why Whitestar was there to contribute her own. The spell was set to 'find' whatever she put in the bottom of the bowl; in this case, of course, it would find any other examples of the insignia within the range of the spell. Taia realized that this would perhaps serve a double purpose; not only could they determine where their enemy had come from, but they would know with reasonable certainty whether or not there were more of them in Valdemar or on the way to Valdemar.

Not surprisingly, the spell first showed them the uniforms of the decaying fighters they had recently left; Taia quickly directed the spell away from those, only to see the uniforms Kerowyn had apparently removed from the fighters in Haven. She redirected the spell again and was rewarded by an image of a small army marching through the Pelagiris toward Valdemar; she quickly passed that information on to Rolan, who would pass it to all other Heralds in Valdemar including Kerowyn, who would get their own army marching to meet it. Whitestar also made a note to notify the Tale'edras in the area as quickly as she could, but first they had to finish what they were doing. After a candlemark or so, an image of a village finally appeared, and then a town, and then a city; Taia was rewarded by the fact that just as she suspected, this civilization was south of the one she had seen with Farsight the day before. She thought it likely that the village she had seen was somehow connected to the civilization she was seeing now, perhaps similarly to the way the Shin'a'in were connected to the Tale'edras; different peoples, but related. However, that was unimportant now; she needed to learn as much as she could about these people before she ran out of energy. And she wanted to see enough of the region to build a Gate to it.

She watched as the villagers walked from shop to shop, and as they carried their goods in large baskets on their heads to the large building in the center, which seemed to be some sort of government building. It wasn't as grand as the Palace in Haven, but it was clear that it was the fanciest and most impressive building in this civilization. She got the impression that the weather was quite warm; the people walked barefoot, or with the thinnest of sandals, and barely enough clothing to cover what was necessary to cover. But the material was the same weave as the fighters had worn, although people wore different colors of it. Most of the buildings were short and squat, made of mud daub with wooden slats resembling shingles over the top of the mud and strange roofing material made partly out of thatch, partly out of clay tile. The roads weren't paved, exactly, but they were packed dirt, and bordered by bricks; the building in the center was made of the same kind of brick with colored bricks making a design in the walls and a roof entirely of that strange clay tile. She could see the water at the edge of the village and the trees along the other border; this was a civilization sandwiched between the extremes of the Pelagiris and the expanse of the ocean.

Taia had hoped to somehow get an idea of why this particular civilization was attacking Valdemar, but was unable to gain that knowledge; she could see inside the main building, but she couldn't hear what was being said. The rooms were large, with impossibly high ceilings supported by pillars; the pillars had different types of stone wound around the main pillar for a contrast in color. It was quite lovely, actually; if these people hadn't been attacking those Taia loved, she might have wanted to visit. As it was, she couldn't figure out why people from such a beautiful region, which for all appearances had everything it needed, would march across the dangerous Pelagiris to assassinate leaders of a country that had never even heard of them.

And now Taia had to figure out a way to discover that reason, and more importantly, do something about it.


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter thirty-three**

The group finished Kris and Lyra's field circuit without further incident and rode back to Haven. They weren't exactly in a hurry, but they weren't spending any extra time on the road, either. They had been communicating with Kerowyn via Taia's Mindspeech as well as through Rolan, and there had been no sign that any further attempts on the Valdemaran Royal Line were imminent; however, they hadn't known there was any danger at all until it was almost too late. The Tale'edras had banded together to defeat the marching army that Taia and Whitestar had seen, thanks to their warning. They arrived long past dark, and went straight to the stables to care for their mounts. They were tired; Taia really felt she should go and see Kerowyn and discuss what the plan was going to be, but she decided that their response to the assassination attempts had already waited two moons. It could wait one more night for her head not to be muddled with exhaustion.

In the morning, she was not surprised to be summoned to an emergency council meeting at the break of dawn. In fact, she had so completely expected such a summons that she had pilfered an extra couple of fruit pies from the kitchen the night before and left them by her bedside to eat for breakfast.

"Welcome back, Taia," said Selenay. "First order of business, Kris and Lyra have been granted their Whites; we will have a ceremony at some point soon where I will step down from the throne and turn it over to my son and Heir. Second order of business, as we are all aware, is the recent assassination attempts on not only myself, but Kris, Lyra and Elspeth."

There were murmurs arount the table; not everyone had been made aware of the attempts on Kris and Lyra, and not even everyone had known about the attempt on Elspeth. Darkwind had used MageSight to locate the man who had been sent to attack her and taken him out of commission before he even knew what hit him. The ability of a former Tale'edras scout to attack silently and without warning were not to be underestimated; particularly when that former Tale'edras scout was doing so in defense of the woman he loved. Taia was glad she had been able to alert Kerowyn to the risk. She was equally glad that Darkwind had taken it upon himself to deal with it; Elspeth would not have tolerated even him as a bodyguard for more than a day or two. Elspeth was a stubborn woman; generally, that was to her credit.

"We will now discuss our plan for how to deal with this new and unknown enemy," said Selenay. "We know where they are, but not who they are. We know what they did, but not why they did it. I do not relish the idea of marching an army through the Pelagiris; I am open to other solutions."

The table erupted. Councilors argued that the army couldn't march through the Pelagiris, it was too dangerous, and besides, would the Tale'edras allow it? They might be allies, but that was still a lot to ask. They argued that there wasn't any option; this new enemy must be dealt with with the greatest degree of force so as to dissuade anyone who wished to try again. Others argued that perhaps they should just send assassins in kind; Taia really didn't like the sound of that argument at all, not just because she was likely to be sent on such a mission and she didn't want to go, but because they had no real idea who their target was or why they had attacked Valdemar in the first place. They needed to retaliate in some manner, of course; but she certainly didn't want to be sent on a blind assassination mission. She wanted to go to bed. She wanted to get back to her merely-normal level of hectic scheduling, where her biggest dilemma was the fact that she didn't have time to train her horses. But that was not the topic of discussion at this table, so she stopped her mind from wandering and got back to paying attention.

Someone made a suggestion of Gating the entire army to where Taia had been able to see the village, and attacking from there. That would end up in a massacre, and no one really liked that idea; but it did give Selenay an idea of her own.

"Taia, are you able to build a Gate to the village square?" asked Selenay.

"I believe so, yes," said Taia. "I will need to build it from here, because I need the power of the Heartstone behind me; but I believe I can."

"What if we took a small defensive force along with a delegation to this village and attempted to open up discussions?" asked Selenaty. "That way, we could determine exactly why they attacked us and perhaps resolve the issue. If they are only attacking us because they want to destroy us for whatever reason, then we can get out of the village and prepare for a war; if there is something we can work out with them, then maybe we actually end up with another ally."

The table erupted again. Most people were appalled at the idea that a village that had attacked their nation, unprovoked, could be made into an ally without retribution; others were simply concerned with how big a force to send, who to send, and how to get them out of there quickly should the need arise. Taia sat quietly; she remembered that Whitestar had learned the trick of building permanent Gates while they had been undercover in the Empire, and had not yet had the chance to try one. She wasn't sure that building a permanent Gate to a village they'd never been to for their first try was a good idea, but she couldn't think of a better way to get their people back out of this village quickly if they needed to. And a permanent Gate was sure to have some way to take it down, as well; she hoped Whitestar had learned that, as well. She wasn't about to make the suggestion without consulting her and discussing it at length, however, so she kept her mouth shut during the meeting, much to Selenay's confusion and consternation; the fact that the head of her military, as well as her best strategic advisor, had nothing to contribute was something of a surprise.

Selenay was smart enough to realize, however, that it wasn't that Taia had no ideas; it was that Taia didn't want to share them with the entire council. So she called an end to the meeting, but held a smaller one in her own office with only Taia, herself, Daren and Kerowyn.

"Good to have you back," said Kero.

"It's good to be back," said Taia. "I think."

They all laughed; they knew exactly what Taia meant. It was good to be home, of course – but it was questionable just how long 'being home' was going to last.

"So," began Daren, "I don't actually believe that you have nothing to contribute to this little dilemma. Out with it."

"I definitely like the idea of Gating a small group into the village, to possibly negotiate some kind of alliance or at least determine whether or not we need to go marching through the Pelagiris," Taia said.

"But what if it turns out that they just want to destroy us?" asked Kerowyn. "I don't relish the idea of being on the run through the Pelagiris, trying to escape them. And I am going on this little venture, by the way, you can't have all the fun to yourself."

"I wouldn't dream of stealing your thunder," said Taia. "I didn't bring it up in the Council, because I'm not entirely certain it's possible. Do you remember learning anything about Permanent Gates that Urtho used to build?"

"Vaguely," said Kerowyn. "I remember my grandmother, Kethryveris, mentioning something about it once. She was having a history discussion with Warrl."

"Yes," said Taia. Kethryveris, an Outlander, had rebirthed the Tale'sedrin for her Swordsworn oathsister Tarma, the only survivor of the massacre of the original Clan. Kethryveris was why Kerowyn, a blonde-haired, green-eyed pale-skinned woman could claim kinship with the Shin'a'in, and why among the Clans there occasionally appeared a Clan-member of that coloring. "It is a spell we had long thought lost forever. But Whitestar discovered that the Empire used such spells regularly, and she thinks she learned how to do it."

"But why would we want to build a Permanent Gate to a land we've never heard of, and where the people have only shown us aggression so far?" asked Selenay.

"Excellent question," said Taia. "We don't. But it's the only way I can think to Gate a small force into the village and get them back home quickly if it turns out that they only want to kill us."

"Wouldn't they just follow us back through the Gate, like the Empire troops followed you here from the Empire, only with the ability to do so permanently?" asked Kerowyn.

"That is a risk, of course," said Taia. "And a small group of them might. But if the Gate can be put up, it can also be taken down; obviously, the Gates Urtho established are long gone. I just don't know how. I need to talk to Whitestar about it."

"Very well," said Selenay. "We adjourn until you learn more of Whitestar's capabilities on Permanent Gates, and then if she believes she can put one up and take it back down, I think we will move forward with this small force."

"I will let you know what I find out as soon as I've discussed it with her," said Taia.

She went back to their rooms intending to do just that; but when she arrived, she was met with a shock. She opened her door – and there she was, sitting on the bed. Except it wasn't her, it couldn't be her, she was standing in the doorway. It was Kiri, but in Haven? When did she get here? How? Why?

"Kiri?!" she exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"It's Minka," said Kiri. "She's dying. I know you never wanted to see her again, but I didn't want let it go and not tell you. An'desha Gated me here; I had no idea you'd just returned from yet another adventure."

"Dying?' said Taia. She wasn't sure how she felt about that. Her mother had been horrible to her, but she was still her mother. And as much as Taia remembered the constant and repeated rejection from her mother, the neglect when she had shown signs of having Gifts, she also remembered how she had been before those Gifts arrived. She had been a loving and gentle mother, once. Particularly before Brandi had told her she was she'chorne. She had once been proud of her daughters, proud to encourage them each in their skills and their development into full Pretera'sedrin members. She had been proud and supportive when Taia trained her first foal, had taught Taia to ride, to spin, to hunt and tan a hide; she hadn't always been horrid.

"I think I need to go see her," said Taia.

"If that's what you want, that's what we'll do," said Whitestar. "I'll pack, you and Kiri catch up. You'll probably need to notify Selenay."

"I also need to discuss Permanent Gates with you," said Taia.

"What? Now?" asked Whitestar. "What does that have to do with your mother?"

"Nothing," said Taia. "The most likely plan against the village that sent the assassins is to Gate a small force to the village and either try to negotiate something with them or at least figure out why they did it and figure out a way to retaliate appropriately."

"Wait, some village sent assassins to Valdemar, and you are planning to negotiate with them?" asked Kiri.

"It depends on why they did it," said Taia. "We've never heard of these people; we don't want to respond by simply massacreing them. There will be reprisals, of course, but slaughtering them is only going to happen if they sent the assassins purely because they wanted to destroy Valdemar."

"I think I like the Shin'a'in way better," said Kiri. "Shoot first, ask questions later."

"Sometimes, I do too," said Taia. "And I think that would be the plan if it didn't involve marching an army through the Pelagiris. But Gating the entire army there to slaughter them without ever learning why they did it doesn't seem right, either; maybe the reason is more far-reaching than this one civilization, and if we slaughter them, we'll never know what it is."

"That's true," said Kiri. "Ok, you win."

"Why do you want to talk about Permanent Gates, though?" asked Whitestar. "Surely you don't want to make a permanent route for them to have access to Haven."

"Of course not," said Taia. "It's just the only way I can think to get the delegation back here quickly, should we need to. So, if you put one up, can you take it down again?"

"I should be able to," said Whitestar. "But not before at least some of them could follow."

"Well, that's something," said Taia. "Let's build one to the Plains. It'll be good practice; we'll see if we can even do it before we absolutely have to."

"Good plan," said Whitestar. "Now, go, talk to Selenay, I'll pack and prepare to build the Gate."

"We don't have to leave this instant," said Taia. "We'll leave in the morning."

"Fine," said Whitestar.

Taia and Kiri went together back to Selenay's quarters, and Taia knocked on the door. Selenay was just as shocked to see Kiri as Taia had been.

"What's this?" she asked. "Two of you?"

"Not exactly," said Taia. "She's the pretty one. She came to tell me that our mother lies on her deathbed, and Whitestar and I are going to visit the Plains to pay our respects."

"I was under the impression that you weren't exactly close," said Selenay.

"That is true," said Taia. "But I still feel like I should go. We leave in the morning; we will be back in time for Kris' coronation. I will be available by Mindspeech, of course; Sayvil can boost Kerowyn enough to reach me if needed."

"Alright," said Selenay. "What did you learn from Whitestar?"

"We are going to build a Permanent Gate to the Plains as a sort of practice run," said Taia. "She thinks it's a plan that could work."

"Very well," said Selenay. "When you return, we will leave for this new civilization to learn what we can learn and then we will have the coronation. We will choose the team in your absence; of course you know you will be a part of it."

"Of course," said Taia. "Goddess knows I can't stop gallavanting around the world."

"And a good thing, too," said Selenay. "Now off with you, reconnect with your sister here and we'll see you when you return. And my condolences on the loss of your mother, however estranged your relationship is."

"Thank you," said Taia.

They returned to Taia's quarters and helped Whitestar finish packing for the next trip. Taia sighed; she wasn't sure how she was going to feel about her mother's death. She wasn't sure how her mother would react to seeing her again. She wasn't sure she wanted to find out.


	34. Chapter 34

**Chapter thirty-four**

Early the next morning, Taia and Whitestar got out of bed, had breakfast and took their packs out to the stables. They loaded up their horses and got set to build the Permanent Gate to the Plains while they waited for Kiri. Whitestar was a little nervous; she had studied what she could find on Permanent Gates while they were in the Empire, but she hadn't exactly had unrestricted access to the Royal Library. She did know one thing, though; if she succeeded, Firesong was going to be insane with jealousy. She hoped she had the opportunity to tell him all about it. Kiri arrived, and it was time to begin. There wouldn't be the necessity to rush through the Gate, if she was successful; if she wasn't, well, Taia might have the energy to build a traditional Gate or she might not. The Heartstone would help maintain that possibility, but it was always possible that Whitestar could exhaust them both and not succeed. She hoped that would not be the case.

She settled herself comfortably on her horse and carefully grounded and centered herself. She closed her eyes and began; the beginning of the Gate was more or less the same as the Permanent version, but it added shielding. She had to give it an energy source; she used the Heartstone. She thought it likely that Urtho had simply used himself; he was powerful enough that he would never have noticed the power drain. Also, he probably had something similar to a Heartstone himself; the Tale'edras had to have learned it from somewhere. She also realized, somewhat late, that the fact that she tied it to the Heartstone meant it was now tied to every Herald in Valdemar; she wasn't quite sure how the Shin'a'in would feel about that, but she could always change it later. Or just take it down. Right now, she needed the energy source; she was enormously powerful, but even she didn't have the energy to allow this Gate to permanently be a drain on herself. In the days of nodes and ley lines – she likely could have done it then. But not now, when her only source of replenishment was ambient energy; it did not replenish as quickly as she would have needed it to for this Gate to drain it.

The Gate was built; but she wasn't finished. An ordinary Gate, this would be the end; and it required enough energy that not many mages left could even construct an ordinary Gate, since the Mage Storms. Most of the mages who could were exhausted by the effort of building one. Whitestar, however, along with Taia was powerful enough that she could attempt the Permanent Gate, which required even more energy than an ordinary one; however, without the Heartstone, she wasn't sure it would be possible. She added layers of shielding and structure to the Gate, and when it finally appeared to qualify as what she had seen described as a Permanent Gate she placed the 'trigger'. This would ensure that any mage Master-level or higher could trigger the Gate and travel to wherever the other terminus was; in this case, Dhorisha Plains.

Finally, it was done; the Gate was up, and it was Permanent. Whitestar had succeeded, but bragging to Firesong would have to wait until she recovered; she was glad she had tied herself to the saddle, because she was completely spent. Taia fed her some willowbark tea and then led her horse throught the Gate, triggering the Gate to close behind them; it would open again, on this spot, when triggered but would not be open for anyone to just walk through at any time. They had chosen a spot just outside the actual campground of the Pretera'sedrin Clan; Taia's banishment had been lifted, but she still didn't feel comfortable staying within the borders of her Clan. There had been too many years of rejection, and besides, An'desha still carried Falconsbane's eyes; while Taia could accept intellectually that he was not, in fact, Mornelithe Falconsbane, she could not control the quake of terror and anger she felt when she saw his eyes. She didn't want to set up camp within his borders.

Taia and Kiri tended to the horses and set up camp; Whitestar went directly into the tent to sleep off the reaction headache. The birds started hunting while Taia built a fire and Kiri set up her own tent. They would wait until Whitestar awoke to go into the camp; Taia wasn't prepared to see her mother without Whitestar by her side. So she sat and tended the fire while her lifebonded slept. When the birds dropped in with the lunch they had caught – a deer – she quickly skinned it and cut the meat into manageable portions. Kiri came over and began preparing the hide for tanning. Taia spiced the venison like she knew Whitestar liked it and began roasting it over the fire. When one piece was finished cooking, she spiced and spitted the next; she needed to have the entire deer roasted as quickly as possible, or it would start to rot. In the kitchens at the Palace, they had giant ovens to cook the entire deer at once; but Taia only had the small campfire, so it was a difficult task. She couldn't slow-roast it by wrapping it in pieces of the skin and burying it, like they did pork; they would use this hide. Whitestar needed a new tunic, and if there was enough left over, Taia needed breeches.

She was almost done roasting the venison when Whitestar woke. She came out of the tent and drank the willowbark tea that Taia handed her without a word. Her headache would not be gone for at least the rest of the day, but she couldn't sleep all that time.

"So it worked?" asked Taia. "We have a Permanent Gate for the first time since Urtho?"

"Well, the first time for our peoples since Urtho, but yes," said Whitestar. "It worked."

"Good," said Taia. "Now we know, for building the one to the enemy village."

"Although I can't say I'm looking forward to doing that again," said Whitestar. "And I suppose I ought to also build one to k'Treva at some point; we can visit your family now whenever we wish, but not mine, and you know how mother will react when she hears that."

"And she will hear it, too," joked Taia. "I'm not sure how, exactly, but she will."

"I think she sends her little messenger birds to spy on Pretera'sedrin," said Whitestar. "To see if we've been there. Or maybe she just uses Farsight, I'm not sure."

"I think it's just a mother thing," said Kiri. "Remember how Minka used to know exactly where we'd been, even when she had no possible way of finding out what we'd been up to?"

"That is true," said Taia. "I remember getting quite the lectures for some of those shenanigans!"

"Remember when we painted her horse?" asked Taia. "I thought she would hyperventilate and collapse, she was so angry."

"Well, I can see why," said Kiri. "Red isn't exactly a good color on a mare."

"Red?!" gasped Whitestar. "You painted her horse red?!"

"We did!" laughed Taia. "It was her favorite color, and it was her birthday!"

"So we took her out to see what we'd done, we were so excited! And here was this sopping wet, bright red horse plodding around and leaving big red hoofprints all over the field!" laughed Kiri.

"It lasted an entire moon before that poor horse went back to grey," said Taia. "And she had to ride a different one the entire time, or the paint would bleed into her clothing, and anyway good luck hunting deer with that!"

"She stood there looking at it with her face getting redder and redder, until it almost matched the horse," said Kiri. "She wanted so much to yell at us but we were so proud of our gift, she couldn't bring herself to do it."

"Sounds like she wasn't always a horrible mother," said Whitestar.

"No," said Taia. "She wasn't. She was a good mother, actually – the best – until Brandi came out as she'chorne and mother banished her. And still after that, she was good to the rest of us until I showed signs of my Gifts."

"That's what makes it hard now," said Kiri. "We remember when she wasn't a hateful person. And that's the person we miss, and that's the person we will mourn when her life is over."

"We have been mourning her all this time, I think," said Taia. "And no matter how unlikely it seems, or how much we know in reality she won't go back to being that person, we can't stop hoping that maybe we will someday have our mother back again. And when she dies, that hope is gone forever."

"I suppose so," said Whitestar. "I hadn't thought of it quite that way."

"Neither had I until I said it," said Taia.

They finished eating their lunch. Taia wasn't quite sure she was ready to go into the camp and face her mother, deathbed or no. She sent Ryki, who was now able to fly short distances again and was immensely proud of his progress, to let Andrien know they had arrived. Ryki couldn't fly with the speed, the height or the endurance he used to have, but he could manage a short distance; despite the rarity of Taia's visits, the Shin'a'in were accustomed enough to the visit of a Tale'edras, Taia and Whitestar or otherwise, that they wouldn't shoot down an extra-large bird in the hopes of a feast. So Taia was comfortable letting Ryki take this message. Had they been in a region where the people were not used to Tale'edras birds, however, Ryki could not yet fly out of arrow range and he would have been grounded in favor of Jyus.

Much to Taia's surprise, when Andrien arrived there were three horses, instead of the two she was expecting for Andrien herself and Jarik. They were coming at a walk, and when they arrived it was obvious why; the third horse was ridden by a small boy not quite two years old. His horse had a lead rope attached for safety, but the boy was clearly holding the reigns for himself. Shin'a'in children did, in fact, learn to ride before they could walk.

"Well, hello!" said Taia. "Who's this? Another secret, I suppose?"

"This," said Andrien, "is Kurien. He was born while you were in the Empire, and then – well, I kept thinking your next visit would be soon. I keep making that mistake. I need to write you more often!"

"Yes," said Taia, "you do. But now you won't necessarily have to. Whitestar learned how to build a Permanent Gate, and she built one from Haven to here, so An'desha can trigger it whenever you want to visit me, and I can visit you more frequently as well. But. No more keeping these giant secrets!"

Taia was genuinely hurt, this time. The marriage to Jarik was one thing; Andrien had genuinely wanted to surprise her sister, and time got away from her. But this was her first nephew, and he was almost two years old already; Taia realized that she didn't visit very often, but she did write, and she visited when she could. Andrien did not make that same effort. They had never been close, but all the same, they were sisters. A child was a big deal. Particularly from the only member of their family able to have one.

"You're right, and I'm sorry," said Andrien. "I don't have a good reason, I should have written. Between having a newborn and then caring for mother in her illness, I guess I lost track of how much time had passed."

"But there's no reason I couldn't have written, and I should have," said Jarik. "I have no excuses whatsoever."

"Fine," said Taia. "Now let me get a look at my nephew."

Taia walked up to the horse Kurien was riding and held out her hand to the child.

"Hello, Kurien. I'm you're aunt Taia. Over there is Whitestar. Would you like to meet her?" she said.

Much to her surprise, Kurien launched himself out of his saddle and only Taia's battle reflexes enabled her to catch him. She laughed and took the child over to Whitestar. They then introduced him to the birds, who made every effort to appear small and as gentle as kittens, but Kurien still found them frightening. All except for Ryki, who made a big show of how helpless he was with his injured wing; Kurien seemed to feel sorry for the injured raptor and toddled up to give him a hug which Ryki tolerated with remarkable diplomacy. They spent some time entertaining Kurien and laughing at his antics; he and Ryki played a spirited game of tag. Syen was a little hurt that the child was so afraid of her, and Jyus was surprised; he was the smallest of the four, and usually the least threatening. Sera just watched him play with Ryki and was glad that for once, there was something her friend could do that none of the rest of them could.

"You'll have to teach him to use a sword," said Taia to Kiri. "One of us ought to teach Andrien's offspring the family business."

"Oh, and you think I can't teach him myself?" joked Andrien.

"Of course you can," said Taia. "But it's my opinion that your teachers should be someone other than your parents, as much to give the parents a break from the child as to have a fresh pair of eyes to train him."

"Besides," said Kiri, "I'm not saying you're not a good swordfighter. I'm saying I'm Kal'enedral and you're not. Which is a good thing, since if you were, Kurien would not exist to teach in the first place."

"That is true," said Andrien. "I was only teasing."

"Anyway, we have to have a break from him, if only to give your sisters more children to spoil," said Jarik. Andrien blushed furiously.

"Oh, absolutely," said Whitestar. "The more of that, the better!"

They all laughed, enjoying Andrien's embarrassment for the moment.

"Now," said Taia. "I suppose the time has come to go see Minka. What can I expect?"

"She's still herself," said Andrien. "She recognizes people and speaks coherently, she just tires easily and she can't really get up out of the tent anymore."

"I guess it was too much to hope for that she wouldn't recognize me," said Taia. "All right, let's go."

They all got up and walked into the camp. Taia was really not looking forward to this, but still felt it was something she needed to do. They walked through the camp; the rest of the Clan smiled or nodded in her direction, but none of them really said anything. Taia had been absconded to k'Treva when she was fourteen, and before then had spent a year isolated, feared and condemned by the Clan; the fact that they now knew better only made them more embarrassed to acknowledge her. She sighed. It would take another generation or two to undo the damage that shaman and her mother had done to the Pretera'sedrin.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, they reached the other side of the camp where Minka's tent sat in isolation from the rest of the Clan; this was the result of the pronouncement Kiri had made to her as consequence of her actions. She was fed and clothed and housed by the Clanmembers, but isolated; no one spoke to her, and no one responded when she spoke to them. Andrien was the one exception, and only to check in with her periodically to make sure she was safe; she had spent time caring for Minka when she was too ill to care for herself, but the once vibrant social creature that Taia remembered had shrunken into a shell of a person. It was sad, but necessary. Taia scratched at the tent opening, as was customary among the Shin'a'in in place of knocking on a door, and went in.

She saw a tiny, shiveled, wrinkled woman and for a moment thought that her mother had already passed, and this was just an imposter; but then the woman opened her eyes, and Taia saw the sharpness of her mother's glance. She was surprised at the state of Minka's body, but this was definitely her. Her eyes had not lost one bit of their intelligence or their fire.

"Hello, mother," Taia said.


	35. Chapter 35

**Chapter thirty-five**

Minka stared back at Taia. She didn't have the energy anymore to rise from her bed, or even to move her limbs to do more than the slightest gesture; but none of that kept the glare of hatred from her eyes. Taia was fairly certain that she had made a mistake in coming here, but she had done it, and she wasn't about to turn tail back out of the tent just based on a glare. A small part of her mind found it ironic that a person could face an entire army on a field and not even blink, but one glare from her mother and she was toast.

"You are not my daughter," said Minka coldly. At first Taia thought that perhaps Minka had lost her memory and didn't recognize her, but then she realized that was wishful thinking; Minka knew exactly who she was.

"But you are my mother," she said calmly. She didn't feel calm, but she was glad that the years of schooling her tone to not actually reflect her true feelings was paying off. "And I remember when we were both happy about that, don't you?"

"I remember when you were the pride of the entire Clan," said Minka. "And then you betrayed me, you betrayed everything you were raised to be, to go off and be – this abomination that stands before me! You are not my daughter!"

"You do know how to keep me humble, don't you?" said Taia. "I'm not here to argue with you about who rejected whom or who betrayed what. I'm here because you're my mother, and you're dying, and I remember when you were my mother. Don't you think it's time to let the past go and just be a family again?"

"You are not my daughter," Minka repeated. "You are an abomination! Get out! I will not suffer you in my last days, get out!"

Taia sighed. "Very well, mother," she said. "Goodbye. I do love you; at least, I love the mother I remember when I was a child. It seems she died a long time ago."

"GET OUT!" screamed Minka. Taia left.

"I'm sorry, love," said Whitestar. "I know how much you wanted her to accept you at the end."

"I guess maybe it's better than wondering what might have been," said Taia. "At least now I don't have to wonder whether or not she would have changed her ways if I'd just come sooner. I don't have to wonder if I could have had a mother again."

"She hasn't been anyone's mother in some time," said Kiri. "Just a prisoner of her own hatred. It's sad, really. We ought to pity her. But – "

"But it's hard to do that, when it's so easy to be angry and hurt by her," said Taia.

"I feel like I owe you both an apology," said Andrien.

"Whatever for?" said Kiri.

"Well," said Andrien, "you remember mother being loving and normal, and then – not; I only remember her being difficult, but good to me. And I didn't realize that she wasn't right in what she said until much later; otherwise, I don't know, maybe I could have talked her around. Maybe not, but I could have tried."

"And then she would have only rejected you, too," said Taia. "And what good would that have done? Give you the same pain that Brandi and I had, and for what? No. No, Andrien, you don't need to apologize that mother loves you. That is not something to be ashamed of."

"Of course not," said Kiri. "And besides, she didn't reject me. I rejected her beliefs – a little late to save my twin sister, but I did. I could have stayed in her good graces; but I loved my people more."

"And there it is," said Taia. "She could have been such a wonderful mother, but she wasn't. She instead chose to give in to her darker nature. We would do well to learn from her, and to remember that we all have one. She gave in; because she was lonely, she was vulnerable, she couldn't handle the pressure of raising four girls alone. We should make sure we never do."

"Well said," said Kiri. "Well said indeed."

Taia cried later on Whitestar's shoulder in the privacy of their tent. She was not ashamed to cry in front of her sisters, but she had never been one for public displays of emotion, and such habits are hard to break even when they aren't necessary. If she were honest with herself, she had to admit that she had rather expected her mother to react to her visit exactly the way that she had; but she had still had hope that she wouldn't. She supposed that the little girl in her that still needed her mother would never completely grow up; she supposed that must be true of everyone. A person was never so old, she supposed, that they outgrew the need for their mother.

In the morning, Taia tried one more time to visit with her mother and was once again rejected. She would tolerate only Andrien attending to her needs; not even Kiri was allowed inside the tent. So the sisters, Whitestar, and Jarik spent their days entertaining Kurien, training horses, hunting, tanning, and doing basically Shin'a'in things while they awaited Minka's passing; it wouldn't be long. She hadn't been able to eat or drink enough to sustain herself in days. They told stories about their childhoods, they got to know Jarik and Kurien, they made themselves new clothing; if there had not been a dying woman in the tent next to them, it would have been a luxurious vacation.

After about a sennight, Andrien entered their mother's tent to see to her needs and found Minka lying still. She had stopped breathing; she was gone. She lay on her pallet with her face to the wall of the tent, eyes open but no longer seeing what they looked at. Minka was gone to the Goddess. Taia wondered whether the Goddess would accept her, as far away from Her teachings Minka had been; but she had faith that the Star-Eyed was merciful, and she prayed that Minka would be judged for the woman she had been in her youth, and not the hateful person she had become. She supposed she could have wished her an ill reception, or not wished for anything at all; but she didn't have the energy or the time anymore for vengeance and anger. Only grief, for the mother she once had known and for what might have been, if only her father had lived, if only that shaman had never come, if only her mother had been less of a sponge for his teachings. There were entire lives lost in those 'if onlies'.

An'desha, the current shaman of the Pretera'sedrin, arrived later in the day to discuss the arrangements for the funeral with Andrien. Kiri sat in on the discussion and contributed some, but mostly Andrien was the one tasked with making the decisions. Kiri and Taia were certainly willing to contribute if asked, but Andrien was the one who had had a relationship with Minka at the end; Andrien had taken on the responsibility of Minka's care when she was no longer able to care for herself. Out of respect for that, both Kiri and Taia allowed Andrien to have all the control over what would be done for her in memorial. Kiri wanted to be present for the discussion, however, in support of Andrien; Taia couldn't bring herself to sit with An'desha and reveal any of her more private emotions. She knew he was not Falconsbane. She knew it. But those eyes. She could not get past those eyes, how they were at once Falconsbane's eyes and the way they would bore into her as if An'desha the shaman could see into her soul.

In the end, they decided a simple ceremony would be the best. Very few of the Clan members wished to attend; first, they had taken Kiri's banishment of Minka seriously. It was the ultimate disgrace as a Shin'a'in to be declared Oathbreaker and banished from the life of the Clan, and no one wanted to be associated with someone who had earned that curse. Second, many of them, while they hadn't actually protested the hateful beliefs she and the previous shaman had espoused and in fact had largely gone along with them without a squeak, they wanted to pretend they had not. They wanted to ignore their own hateful past and pretend they had never been part of it; if they attended Minka's funeral pyre, they could not pretend that they had been anything other than her accomplices.

So it was a small group, gathering at Minka's funeral pyre. Andrien, Jarik, and Kurien, Taia, Whitestar and Kiri stood in the front while An'desha led the service. A few of the Clan Elders were also present; they remembered Minka when she was still a good woman, and they were old enough to be beyond caring whether or not the rest of the Clan judged them for their attendance. An'desha said a few words that Taia didn't really hear; she felt as if she were standing in a barrel of water, and sound didn't quite reach her. Everything seemed to be happening in slow motion; part of her mind was actually laughing at how slowly An'desha was moving his arms when he spoke. He got to the end of his speech, and the small gathering sang the ritual Shin'a'in funeral chant. Taia, Andrien and Kiri had led this chant themselves a decade ago, at Brandi's memorial, while Taia had used Magecraft to make the fires of Brandi's pyre dance the story of her life. Then each of the members present, beginning with Andrien and proceeding through all of the family members, then the guests, and finally An'desha himself, took a branch from the burning fire behind them and lit the pyre beneath Minka's body.

They stayed and watched the pyre burn, watching Minka's ashes be carried away on the wind to the Goddess. An'desha was tasked with remaining present until the burning was complete, to make sure both that it was complete as well as to prevent the fire from starting a grassfire on the Plains. As she stood, watching the flames burn away the body that had been her mother, Taia let the fire also burn all of the regret, all of the hurt, all of the anger she still felt towards her mother away. She let survive only the memories she had of Minka as a loving and proud mother, who rejoiced in her daughters' abilities and their development. She felt a weight lifting off of her, and let it be carried away with the ashes of her mother's pyre.

They left before the flame was out; they let An'desha fulfill the responsibility of the shaman to stand guard until it was finished. They felt no need to stay until then; Minka was already gone, and had been for years for both Taia and Kiri. They returned silently to their own tents, alone with their own thoughts and their own grief. In the morning, they woke late. They came together for breakfast over the campfire and shared some more memories of Minka; they joked, they laughed, they cried, and then it was time for Taia and Whitestar to leave. They returned to the terminus of their brand new Permanent Gate and prepared for the moment of truth; if Whitestar had done it correctly, it would only need a small magical trigger to open. If she had not, then one of two things would happen. Either nothing at all would happen, and they would have to build a regular Gate to get home, or the improperly built Permanent Guilt would drain all of Whitestar's magical energy – and Taia's with it. It could – neither of them thought it would, but it could – force a Final Strike out of both of them, and drain even their life energies from them. That was possible with a regular Gate, of course, and why only a mage with sufficient energy could build one; why in the past, only an Adept mage had the capability to do so. Now only a few mages could build one at all, Adept or not; but the danger of building one remained the same.

"Do you think you should shield yourself, so that in case – " Whitestar began.

"If it does drain your life force from you, what difference would it make if it drains mine too? We're lifebonded. I can't shield against that, and I don't want to, anyway," interrupted Taia.

"Good point," said Whitestar. "Okay, here goes."

Taia shielded both of them anyway, so that if the Gate did start draining energy, maybe they would be able to disengage in time; Whitestar extended her energies towards the Gate in order to trigger it. There was a moment of doubt that nothing would happen; for just a moment, both women just stood there, and nothing appeared. Then – Companion's Field was there before them, and they whooped a little in their excitement; this was the first Permanent Gate that any nation or people they had known had built since Urtho. The Empire had them, sure – but they had been a distant population that no one they knew was familiar with. They said their goodbyes to Kiri, Andrien, Kurien and Jarik – and then they walked through the Gate back to their lives.

Which, of course, had not stopped just because they weren't there to live them. The students still needed teaching, and now they were behind; but more importantly, the Council needed to decide what to do about this newly discovered population that had tried to assassinate their royals. And of course, the Council couldn't wait for Taia to unpack to demand her presence at such a meeting; the surprise was that they wanted Whitestar to join, as well. It was not unheard of for Whitestar to attend a Council meeting; after all, anywhere they sent Taia, they in practice also sent Whitestar. Her ideas and abilities were as much a consideration as Taia's. It was mostly a matter of title and the fact that Whitestar had no actual interest in the meetings that she almost never attended. But here they were, called to a Council meeting immediately upon their return as Dirn came to fetch and care for their horses and a page was sent to carry their packs to their rooms.

"Welcome back, Taia, and our condolences on the loss of your mother," began Selenay. "Welcome back also to Whitestar. Now, as you know, I am stepping down from the throne in favor of my son Kris; he will be making the decision regarding how to proceed in the matter of this unknown civilization which has attacked us unprovoked."

Taia knew perfectly well that Kris would be making this decision – and likely many more – based strongly on the advice of his mother. But that was one of the benefits of having the previous monarch step down, rather than be killed; Kris would have the opportunity to learn how to rule, whereas Selenay herself had been forced largely to learn as she went along, being so young when her father was killed in the Tedrel wars. If he was a wise ruler, and Taia knew from watching him on his field circuit that he was, he would utilize every advantage and opportunity for advice he saw available to him; while he was strong enough to weigh the advice and make the final decision on his own, he was also wise enough to not discount the wisdom of the soon-to-be former Queen.

"I have taken the advice of my sister, the King's Own, my mother, and the history of Valdemar into consideration," began Kris. "I have decided on a two-pronged approach, but it depends on one very important factor. Whitestar, you have built the first Permanent Gate in anyone's memory. Are you able to build one to this new population's land, and if so, are you also able to take it down quickly, or is someone else able to do so?"

"I believe so, yes," said Whitestar. "I am quite sure that I can build the Gate, and though Taia and I will both be magically exhausted by the feat, I am certain that I can teach any of our Adept-potential mages to take it down."

"Very good," said Kris. "In that case, please teach Elspeth, Darkwind and any students you feel are up to the task. I want to have backups."

"Certainly," said Whitestar.

"Now," continued Kris, "we are going to send a small group of able warriors, including of course yourselves, Kerowyn, Jeri and some of the guard. I thought maybe a gryphon or two, as well. They will be surrounding Elspeth and Darkwind, as our official ambassadors, to determine why these people attacked us, and if appropriate, negotiate peace. If not appropriate, this small band is to do as much damage as possible without sacrificing themselves and get back through the Gate. We will then take down the Gate, and proceed to plan for war. I am hoping that is not necessary."

"I think we can all agree that war is not something any of us would hope for, but I also don't think these people should get away unpunished for attacking us unprovoked," said the representative from the north. "They were very nearly successful, as well. Are you certain that a small force will be sufficient?"

"We will have the element of surprise," said Kris. "As well as the immediate option of retreat. I plan to have the entire standing Guard present at this end of the Gate terminus in the event that they either need to cross over to rescue the delegation, or handle any of the enemy that may follow them home."

"Then I think this is a reasonable plan and we should proceed at Whitestar's earliest convenience," said the representative from the east.

And that settled it. Taia and Whitestar wouldn't have more than a sennight to enjoy their feather beds before traipsing off for more adventure.


	36. Chapter 36

**Chapter thirty-six**

Taia left Kerowyn in charge of selecting the most appropriate fighters to send on this delegation; it was technically her decision, as the head of the Valdemaran army, but since she had been away on various missions for most of the previous few years Kerowyn was in a better place to actually know which of them was the most appropriate. She chose two dozen fighters, a mix of Guard and Heralds, selected as much for their abilities as general fighters as their specialties in specific weaponry. They agreed that they wanted a solid mix of sword, pike and bowmen; if they needed to fight, they wanted to take out as many of the enemy as possible from a distance. Each of the fighters, however, were also capable swordmen; a fighter who could only use a single weapon type in this kind of delegation would be more of a hindrance than a help. Taia, Whitestar, Jeri and Kerowyn themselves would be positioned immediately around Elspeth and Darkwind while the two dozen guardsmen and Heralds formed concentric circles around them.

In Taia and Whitestar's absence, Kerowyn had discovered which shopkeeper had sold the guard uniform to the would-be assassin without proper identification; that shopkeeper was now in a prison gang, for a sentence long enough that he would never make that mistake again. She had also determined, through extensive questioning, that there had not actually been a spy as they had both believed. Apparently, this would-be assassin had infiltrated Valdemar himself, and had spent a moon or two observing the Queen's activities well enough to predict where she and Daren would be in the evenings, and then lay in wait. He had also watched Elspeth, and informed his countryman on the best way to attack her. The small army that had ambushed Kris and Lyra had been following them from a distance for some time; they had figured out their likely path and illusioned themselves along it. They had even been mistaken at least once, it seemed; when Kerowyn imparted that bit of information, the hair on the back of Taia's neck stood up for a full candlemark.

Treyvan and Hydona, despite their advanced age, insisted on going along both as ambassadors of their own people, able fighters as well as their mage ability; it was this last that convinced Taia that it wasn't as bad an idea as it sounded. She and Whitestar would be drained on arrival, magically speaking; Elspeth and Darkwind would need to conserve their magical abilities both for magical attack and defense as well as possibly to assist in taking down the Gate as quickly as possible in the event of retreat. There were additional Herald-Mages in Haven that would be standing by for that possibility as well, but the more there were available, the more quickly the thing could be taken down if necessary.

"When we get back, I'm going to seriously suggest an age limit for these sorts of trips," said Kerowyn. "I'm too old for this."

"I definitely agree," said Taia. "Not with the idea that you're old, but the idea that these trips are for the young. And none of us are."

"Speak for yourselves," joked Whitestar. "I'm still a young thing, spry as ever."

"And just who was it complaining just last night of her creaking joints and graying hair?" joked Taia.

"You know my hair is as white as yours," said Whitestar.

"We are the same age," said Taia. "And both of us younger than our friend here, who is in better shape than I am by far, and listen to us whine."

"I am not THAT much older," said Kerowyn. "And I haven't been on an adventure in awhile, so I should be excited!"

"The only thing I'm ever excited for anymore is my bed," said Taia. "I don't see nearly enough of it."

"That is true," said Kerowyn. "But as the young ones say, we can sleep when we're dead."

"Long past when we're able to enjoy it," said Whitestar.

They had finished packing for the trip and were spending the evening having dinner at their favorite inn. These were the evenings Taia truly cherished; stress-free dinners with her oldest and dearest friends. Tonight it was just the two of them, plus Kerowyn; usually, Eldan would have joined them, but he was teaching a particularly difficult student how to use her reluctant Mindspeech and he was exhausted. Often, Elspeth and Darkwind were with them, but tonight they were making last minute preparations for the trip. This was the family that Taia cherished most; she loved her sisters, and now with the Permanent Gate to the Plains, she could see them more often. But this was the family where she belonged. These were the people who really understood her.

The next morning the delegation loaded up their mounts and got into position. It would take Whitestar a few candlemarks to set up the Permanent Gate, so there was no rush; but they wanted to be ready, nonetheless. It was a tense gathering; they didn't know what was going to happen when they crossed the Gate. Would they be immediately attacked, or would they be able to open some dialogue? No one could say for sure. They had decided that immediately upon crossing, each of the bowmen were instructed to find a target and fire close enough to warn them, but not actually hit anyone. Everyone selected for this delegation was a solid enough shot on a bow to accomplish that quite successfully; it was likely the arrows fired would be close enough to scrape a cheekbone and draw blood, but not actually injure anyone beyond that. It would be effective in scaring the enemy off from an immediate attack; or so they hoped.

It seemed at once to take forever and mere seconds for Whitestar to build the Gate; immediately following, Jyus, Syen, Sera, Ryki, and Darkwind's Vree flew through it. Ryki was able to fly short distances and insisted on joining the rest of the group. They had determined that the birds could attain height quickly and would not be immediately threatening, seeing as how they hoped the enemy would not recognize them at first as anything other than regular raptors; this way, they could keep a sharp eye out for immediate threats and remove them before the delegation had had a chance to finish passing through the Gate. The rest of them, including Treyvan and Hydona, rushed through the Gate in formation as quickly as they could, and the arrows were fired. As Taia and Kerowyn had hoped, nearly all of them found a cheekbone to scrape and they succeeded in catching the people completely by surprise. They stood then, in formation, weapons drawn and silent with the birds and the gryphons circling them from above.

There was a moment of shocked silence and then Elspeth began.

"We come to you in peace, from the nation of Valdemar which you recently attacked without provocation," she said loudly and clearly. They were not sure what language these people spoke, but she repeated her statement in as many languages as she spoke, which was quite a few; Hardornen, Karsite, Rethwellan, the language of the Empire – no one thought it likely they would speak any of those, but it was worth a try – then Shin'a'in, Tale'edras and Kale'da'in. Finally, when she reached Kale'da'in, there was a moment of recognition on the face of the apparent leader; they found that interesting.

"Why you come here?" said the leader in language that sounded vaguely like Kale'da'in, but not quite. It was very difficult to understand; Darkwind wished briefly that they had thought to bring the dyheli king stag. The king stag had the unique ability to 'take' a language from one person and implant it into the mind of another; it left a terrible reaction headache, but was incredibly useful in negotiation situations with foreign populations.

"You attacked us," said Elspeth in Kale'da'in. "We want to know why."

"Food," said the leader. "We have no large patches of food. You do. We want."

Elspeth thought for a moment; large patch of food? What could that possibly mean? She looked around, and suddenly it hit her. Farms. This was a village by the sea, surrounded by forests and grassland with impossibly tall grass. There were no farms.

"And you thought the best way to achieve that was to kill our leaders?" asked Elspeth.

"That is how you take large patch of food, no?" said the man.

"No," said Elspeth. "You ask. All you needed to do was ask. We would have given you food."

The man looked shocked.

"I ask?" he said. "You give? That easy?"

"We would have negotiated a trade," said Elspeth.

"Trade?" the man said.

"You have never heard of a trade?" said Elspeth, more than a little annoyed.

"No," said the man. "My people, we want what other tribe has, we take. We kill their chief, chief's children. Take over. No trade."

"Well, my people, we want what other tribe has, we talk," said Elspeth. "Will you talk, or are you going to try to kill me?"

The man didn't answer right away. He looked as if he were thinking; Elspeth appeared to be staring back at him. She was really watching the entire tribe, though, and assessing them. She was surprised by the fact that these people had never learned any kind of nonviolent diplomacy; they didn't look uncivilized. But she took a closer look. It was warm here, almost unbearably; and humid. The people wore skirts, made mostly of grass, but some of the more high-ranking appearing members wore them made of that same lightweight, woven material that their attackers had worn. The housing was mostly bleached and well-packed mud with thatched roofs, thatched with that same impossibly tall grass; the official buildings, however, were stone, very well cut and shaped, and stacked so well together she could hardly see the line between one stone and the next. These people were excellent builders, when they had a mind to put towards it; they made excellent fabric, too, when they put their energy into making it. Why had they not developed enough to farm for food? Clearly the could cut the grass, they used it for thatch. So that land could be cleared.

:Why have these people not progressed to be able to farm for food, but they build so well, and have such wonderful fabric, and they fight well?: she asked Taia.

:The Shin'a'in do not farm.: said Taia. :Neither do Tale'edras. They garden, but they do not farm. Would you call us uncivilized?:

:Certainly not.: said Elspeth. :It just boggles my mind.:

:They do seem to be a bit of a mystery.: said Taia.

:They are a bit of a mystery in the same way that you are a bit of a swordswoman.: said Elspeth.

Taia sent back a sentiment of amusement at that, Elspeth was absolutely right. These people were strange. The fact that their language was so close to Kale'da'in was even stranger.

"We talk," said the man.

"Good," said Elspeth. Then, in Valdemaran, "Kero, Darkwind, you're with me. The rest of you, stay here and keep your eyes open."

Kerowyn and Darkwind followed Elspeth, who followed the man into the biggest building in the village; he also took two guards. What the man didn't know was that Kerowyn was keeping a constant mindlink with Taia, so that Taia could hear everything that was happening in this meeting.

"How does trade work?" asked the man. He seemed genuinely interested.

"You give us products that we want, we give you products that you want," said Elspeth.

"How much product?" asked the man.

"It depends on how much you want, and what we negotiate for," said Elspeth.

"What is negotiate?" asked the man.

Wow. This was paradoxical. Such advanced buildings, fabrics, and fighting ability; even magic. But their basic diplomacy was nonexistent.

"Talk," said Elspeth. "You state how much you want, we state how much of your product we need for the trade to be fair. We keep talking until we come to an agreement."

"You no kill us? Take what you want?" asked the man incredulously.

"No," said Elspeth. "We don't kill anyone who hasn't attacked us first."

"Why you not kill us for attacking your leaders?" asked the man. "We attack first. You should kill us."

"We had never heard of your people," said Elspeth. "We didn't know you existed. We had no idea why you attacked us, and we wanted to find out before we killed you."

This the man seemed to understand. "You kill us now?" he asked.

"No," said Elspeth. "You want to trade, we will trade."

"But we attack you," said the man.

"And for that reason, our first trade will be distinctly in our favor," said Elspeth.

The man nodded. "Very generous," he said. "What you want to trade for?"

Elspeth thought about that. She liked that fabric; they might try that on the guard, or at least have it available for the summer or for visits to Karse. The grass, too, seemed more efficient than straw for thatch; but what she really wanted was those stonecutters.

"You build very good buildings," she said. "And you have very fine fabric. We want builders to come to Valdemar and teach our people. And we want some fabric. And thatch."

"For how much food?" asked the man. "We need vegetables. And fruit. And grain for bread."

"We want those things in payment for your attack," said Elspeth. "We will trade you vegetables and fruit for fish. We will trade you grain for additional builders or fabric."

The man thought for a moment. Then he spoke rapidly to one of his bodyguards in his own language, too rapidly for Elspeth to understand; the bodyguard bowed and ran out of the building. He returned shortly with three men.

"This is Chieth, Shiro and Len," said the leader. "I am Kryos. I am leader here. These men are master builders, and have no women or children to consider. They will return to Valdemar with you and teach your people how to build like we do."

"Good," said Elspeth. "And the rest of the deal?"

"The men are assembling it now," said Kryos.

:?: Elspeth asked Taia.

:The men out here are barking orders and assembling piles of fabric, thatch and fish.: said Taia. :That was easy.:

:Almost too easy.: said Elspeth. :I'm a little suspicious.:

:Good, you should be.: said Taia. :Good instincts, but my Empathy is not picking up on anything and neither is Whitestar's. Ask Gwena.:

Elspeth did, and Gwena reassured her that while it was surprising, there did not seem to be anything underhanded going on. This was too easy; and yet, it was almost laughable. A village that was so highly skilled in textiles and building, not to mention their fighting ability, and yet so primitive in their diplomacy was an entirely unexpected experience for them. But a good one. She had really hoped to avoid any military solution; she was certain that Valdemar could defeat them if it came to it, but not without heavy losses against their fighting abilities, not to mention the completely different style of mage battle. If this new alliance was a success, she would have to find a way to learn that style, and incorporate it into Herald Mage training.

But first things first. They had a shipment of goods and three new builders to take home, and some food to ship back. Gwena had been in contact with Rolan, who had arranged for crates of food to be passed through the Gate at the same time that the delegation brought back their share; when they had finished, Whitestar closed the Gate. It would only work in one direction for the foreseeable future; they didn't trust their new allies that much. Not yet.


	37. Chapter 37

**Chapter thirty-seven**

After many moons of cooperation, Chieth, Shiro and Len adapted to life in Valdemar with remarkable speed and were even looking at the possibility of marrying a few of the local craftsmen's daughters. They learned the language, slowly but surely; and those Valdemarans who were familiar with Kale'da'in learned theirs. After much discussion and research, it turned out that this population descended from the few fragments of Urtho's army that had not escaped by Gate during the Cataclysm. It had always been the belief that no one had survived; but their ancestors had made an escape by foot and were far enough away that some of them survived the blast. They had continued on their trek through the newly-mangled Pelegiris through sheer determination and courage, and settled on the sea when they could go no further. They had killed or absorbed any surrounding population by assassinating their leaders, as they began to do in desperation for goods and inability to speak with them, and taking over the surviving population. What had begun in desperation, continued in tradition, and thus they became a population that developed enormous skill in textiles and building, but maintained truly barbaric means of 'diplomacy'. But they were learning, finally.

Once they established regular trade and minimal trust, they stopped worrying about assassination attempts; although it would be many more moons before they taught the Ur'nomi – that was the name of their tribe – how to trigger their end of the Permanent Gate. They also proved to be quick learners in the art of diplomacy; they got the better side of trade negotiations as often as Valdemar did. They were fair, though; never tried to get something for nothing. Elspeth was beginning to consider asking them to teach her their mage techniques; Jeri was considering inviting one of them to become a teacher in the collegium, and was planning to do just that during their next transaction. Elspeth was taking a bit more time; she didn't want to reveal all of their weaknesses, and their lack of familiarity with their magic style was quite a weakness in her mind. They had already shown that their best combat mages could not effectively counter the Ur'nomi mages; Taia had needed to use physical methods to end that battle, and Whitestar had barely held her ground. They had defended themselves against their swordfighting techniques, with difficulty, but successfully; Elspeth was not ready to admit to them that a mage attack would likely be successful.

The time had come for the ceremony in which Selenay would officially hand the crown over to Kris. There were mixed feelings all around Haven, and indeed all around Valdemar and even amongst their allies, about this; everyone loved Selenay. She had been a wise and much-loved Queen, and she had been their Queen for as long as most of them could remember. There were very few left old enough to remember Sendar, and they were getting fewer every day. Selenay had been through a lot herself, and had seen her nation through the end of the Tedrel wars, two wars against Ancar, one against the mage who tried to take over for Ma'ar so many years past; she had faced the threat of the Eastern Empire, and while there were a select few who knew exactly how that threat had been dealt with, they knew it had. She had seen them through the Mage Storms and through the alliance with Karse, their long-time enemy, and the recent assassination attempts had only increased their affection for her. The people liked Kris, and knew he would follow in his mother's footsteps; but they were big footsteps to follow in, and everyone knew that. Most of all Kris himself.

They decided to hold the ceremony on Midsummer's Day. There would be more people in Haven during the Festival to see it, which would be important for them; also, the city would already be decorated and in festival mood, with classes canceled and the populace ready for a celebration. It would save the nobility the trouble of making a separate trip into Haven, and therefore the businesses of Haven the challenge of keeping up; it would also allow more of the commoners, already in the city to sell their goods and enjoy the Festival, a chance to be a part of the fun. And so the hertasi of Haven got started arranging the ceremony, and the cooks got started planning the menu, and Whitestar built a Permanent Gate to k'Treva – much to F'resong's consternation, as he had not yet had the chance to learn the trick – so that their Tale'edras friends could attend more easily. Taia invited her sisters, and was surprised when they agreed to attend. An'desha came as well, as he had known Selenay before Taia did; Taia made sure to stay clear of him, but she was not upset at his presence.

Haven was quite the shock for Kiri and Andrien, much more for Bluefeather and Hawkwind. Greyhawk took it in stride; as a scout, he didn't live in a city, but he had seen them. From a distance, to be sure, but he was not easily shaken. Firesongwas there, in his most outrageous costume, as much a gift to his friend Selenay as a means to counteract the embarrassment he felt that his cousin had made the Permanent Gate before he knew how. He was certain, however, to rectify that problem immediately upon his arrival; Whitestar had grown up with him, and so was prepared for that inevitability and didn't overly tease him for his ignorance. Firesong promptly made plans to make Permanent Gates between all the Tale'edras Vales. He brought back with him Muriel, the Herald-Mage trainee Taia had sent him when she left for the Empire. She was now fully trained, and confident in her abilities; she no longer posed a threat to accidently level a city if someone startled her. She would begin her field circuit immediately following the ceremony and be granted her Whites at the end of that journey.

The cereomony was held in the evening, so that it was cool; but also because it was a full moon and the light of that moon would accentuate the beauty of the blue and white mage lights lighting up Companion's Field. There was no hall in the Palace large enough to accommodate the number of people wishing to attend Kris' coronation, so the Companions had kindly offered the use of their field, as they did so frequently for royal weddings and other ceremonies of high importance and attendance. Also, it meant they were able to attend; so their motives were not entirely altruistic. There were decorated tables set up on the sides of the field with delicious snacks, as well as pigs and beef shanks roasting at various intervals; even Whitestar had contributed to the food choices with roast pheasants, roasted with the cabbage-leaf presentation she had first tried in the Empire. The Tale'edras had brought with them a contingent of tervardi to sing and their messenger birds were flying around the air with tiny lights strapped to their legs. The whole field was alive and Taia had never seen anything quite so beautiful in her life.

All the Heralds were wearing their dress whites, and the Companions were wearing their formal tack. The Guard was wearing their full dress uniforms, and so was Taia; Whitestar and the Tale'edras wore their most elaborately beautiful costumes, in shades of blue and white and silver to honor Valdemar. They had raised a platform at the edge of the forest, and the Council members were seated in a row at the back of it. Selenay sat in her formal Whites in front of them, and to her left was Kris in his brand new formal Whites. Alaran and Caryo were on either end of the platform, in their formal tack as well as being crowned with flowers and silver bells. It was quite the production.

"I have been honored to have been your Queen," said Selenay to start the ceremony. "We have been through a lot together, and I have done my best to lead you through it and work together to build a stronger and brighter future for our children."

A cheer went up through the crowd; the people were proud of their Queen.

"The time has come to hand over the reins of power to my son, Kris, in whom I have full confidence he will lead you and work with you as I have done."

Kris stood, and walked to the front of the platform.

"Kris, my son, do you accept the burden and responsibility of this crown? Will you lead the people of Valdemar in the spirit of its founders, to the best of your ability, with all of her citizens safety and prosperity at the heart of your rule? Will you make your decisions with the concerns of all her citizens in the forefront of your mind?"

"I do, and I will," Kris said simply. Selenay placed the crown on her son's head; it was finished.

"I now pronounce Kris to be your King," said Selenay.

A cheer went through the crowd again.

"As your King, I promise to protect and lead the people of Valdemar in safety and in war, should it come. I promise to consider your prosperity and security before my own. I promise to be fair in my rulings and generous with our riches. And with that promise in mind, I further promise to focus always on what is most important – enjoying our lives. Now eat, drink, and celebrate! The party has begun!"

Everyone laughed. It was a fitting way to begin a reign.


	38. Chapter 38

**Epilogue**

Many hundreds of years later, when the fields of Valdemar had given way to rolling hills and the fully-tamed Pelagiris was so far a memory that people assumed its former magic to be the superstition of their uncivilized ancestors, the city of Haven was no more. Its buildings lay in crumbled ruins beneath a new city, founded they say by a pair of twins found with an unusually intelligent wolf. The people loved their horses still, cared for them, depended on them, and they particularly loved pure white horses although no one could quite remember why. Raptors flew above the city, and the people captured some and flew them in order to help with the hunt; if some of them were slightly larger than others, well, that was seen as a good omen. The idea that there was no one true way, and the tolerance of all religions had morphed into the adoption of all religions, but the people all had some reference to a female goddess of the earth with stars in her eyes. Sometimes she went by the name Gaia, sometimes Hera, sometimes Isis or Demeter. But she was always there. They also almost all saw the sun as the representative of some god or another, and he also had many names; Apollo, Ra, Helios, Sol.

Most of the beliefs and practices of Valdemar and her surrounding countries had been forgotten. This city did not merely establish diplomacy with new civilizations, it absorbed them into itself, and not always peacefully. Its leaders were not guided by any wisdom of a Companion, but by advisors and Councils that were not any better or any worse than any Council made up of mortals. Sometimes their motives were good, and they made decisions benefitting the people; sometimes their motives were selfish, and they made decisions benefitting themselves. Sometimes the issues were more complicated, and there was no decision that could make everyone happy; those were the most common kind, because life is messy and complicated and the only thing guaranteed by having more than one person in a room is the fact that they will not agree. But the people prospered, and they expanded, and they built roads and buildings and water transport systems the world had never seen before.

One day, on the banks of a river no longer called Terilee, a young girl with dark hair and tanned skin was walking. She sat down under a tree to rest; this tree was very old, she knew, because first, her papa had told her so and second, it was so large that its branches almost spanned the entire river. She began to play in the dirt at the base of this tree, and she built a castle in the mud. While she was digging, she found something peculiar; there were two strands of silver chain, each a necklace. They were laced together, one to the other, so that they would never come apart from each other. There seemed to be feathers stuck in the links; the girl found this to be odd, but didn't think much of it. The chains seemed to have been made well, but long ago; she didn't know a lot about silversmithing, but her papa was a silversmith, and these did not look like the chains he made. They seemed solid though, and she rather liked them; so she picked them up.

When she did, she noticed that each of them had a charm on it. One charm was an odd pairing of an eagle and a mountain cat; the other was an equally odd charm of that same mountain cat with a horse. She took the necklaces to the river and washed them. The feathers washed away into the river, and so did the dirt; the silver shone, now, and the girl could see that while the style was very different from what her papa made, these necklaces were very well made. She liked them. She decided she would keep the necklace with the horse and cat on it, and the other she would give to her best friend, a little blonde girl who was so shy she didn't have any other friends. She was the daughter of the chief, who planned on using the eagle as the new city's totem; that made the necklace appropriate. The daughter of a silversmith was not supposed to be friends with the daughter of the chief, but they couldn't help it; they liked each other right away. It was as if an unseen force was drawing them together; but the girl supposed that was just her imagination running wild again. She would give her friend the necklace, though. That way, they would be best friends forever.


End file.
